"We are ready to help" – Akufo-Addo promises after cyclone Idai in Mozambique,

General News of Friday, March 22, 2019

Source: Myjoyonline.com

2019-03-22

President Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo sent messages of condolence to Malawi, Zimbabwe and Mozambique in the wake of the tropical cyclone Idai.

The President said in three personalized letters, dated Wednesday, March 20, 2019, for President Filipe Nyusi of Mozambique, President Emerson Mnangagwa and President Peter Mutharika of Malawi.

"On behalf of the Government and people of Ghana, I extend my sincere condolences to your Excellency and the brotherly people of Mozambique for this tragedy," said President Akufo-Addo.

"You can rest badured of the solidarity of the Ghanaian people and their government in these difficult times. We are ready to help, to the extent of our modest means, to restore a sense of normalcy in the daily lives of the affected communities. "

In Zimbabwe, at least 98 people have died and 217 people are missing in the east and south of the country, the government said.

In Malawi, the UN announced that more than 80,000 people have been displaced by the cyclone.

Large areas of Mozambique have been swallowed up by cyclones in low-lying coastal areas, while heavy rains have caused landslides and floods in Malawi and Zimbabwe.

The tropical cyclone made headlines in southern Africa throughout this month.

For six days, in the Mozambique Channel, at the intensity of the tropical cyclone, the storm made landfall in Beira, Mozambique, in the middle of the month, then followed its course westward until it dissipated.

The most important impact of the storm was felt during the landing. It caused floods, excessive winds and storm surge damage in the central region of Mozambique. The neighboring countries of Malawi and Zimbabwe experienced heavy rainfall, floods and wind damage. Madagascar also experienced periods of heavy rainfall during the pbadage of the storm in Beira.

The floods left hundreds of thousands of people homeless and displaced in the area, while the death toll continued to increase during the week following the landing.

The effects of the hurricane were felt as far south as South Africa and led to power outages due to damaged transmission lines supplying the country with 1,100 MW from Cahora. Bbada, in northern Mozambique.