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Rains still hit northern Mozambique on Tuesday, days after Hurricane Kenneth, as the United Nations said aid workers face "an incredibly difficult situation" to reach thousands of survivors.
UN spokeswoman for humanitarian affairs Gemma Connell said bad weather prevented supplies from reaching Pemba's main town on Monday. It will be a challenge in the coming rainy days, she told the Associated Press.
The government once again urged the inhabitants of Pemba to flee to the heights.
The death toll is 38 after Kenneth landed Thursday, just six weeks after cyclone Idai in central Mozambique. This is the first time that two cyclones hit the nation of southern Africa in one season.
Tens of thousands of people in the districts of Macomia and Quissanga north of Pemba and on the island of Ibo need food and shelter. More than 35,000 buildings and houses have been partially or totally destroyed, the government said.
"These people have lost everything," said Connell. "It's essential to provide them with the food they need to survive." Women and children have been hardest hit "without the basic elements they need to survive," especially shelters, she said.
The Monday weather forecast from Mozambique's National Meteorological Service indicates that the northeastern region will continue to receive moderate to heavy rains, with a drop of more than 50 mm over the next 24 hours.
Authorities were preparing for a possible cholera outbreak, with some wells contaminated and drinking water a growing concern.
With the pair of deadly cyclones – Idai killing more than 600 people last month – Mozambique has become "a very complex humanitarian situation," Connell said. Only a quarter of the funds needed for Idai's relief efforts were paid, while those of Kenneth were slow.
"It's a new crisis," she said. "We have to go through both operations, which is a fundamental reality we face every day."
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