The death toll from the tropical cyclone Freddy in southern Malawi has risen to 225, while over 700 others have been injured, the Malawi Department of Disaster Management Affairs said on Wednesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th March, 2023) The death toll from the tropical cyclone Freddy in southern Malawi has risen to 225, while over 700 others have been injured, the Malawi Department of Disaster Management Affairs said on Wednesday.
"The death toll has risen from 190 (as reported in our previous update dated 14th March, 2023) to 225 with 707 injured and 41 reported missing," the department said in a statement on social media.
Moreover, the natural disaster displaced 19,676 households, affecting over 88,000 people, the authorities said, adding that 165 camps had been set to provide shelter for those displaced.
Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera will visit disaster-stricken southern areas of the country on Wednesday. He is expected to remain there "for the foreseeable future to lead Government activities in response to the unfortunate Cyclone effects," the statement read.
On Monday, while in Doha for the UN conference on the Least Developed Countries, Chakwera declared a state of disaster in the southern region of the country. The president has nonetheless been criticized for taking his time before returning from a foreign tour when the cyclone hit the nation.
Deadly cyclone Freddy began forming off northwestern Australia in the first week of February, then crossed the southern Indian Ocean, struck Madagascar on February 21 and reached Mozambique on February 24.
