Two people have been killed and hundreds more left homeless after flash floods swept through large parts of southern Malawi, local officials said on Monday.
Major roads in the districts of Chikwawa and Nsanje were also rendered impassable as a result of incessant rain since the new year, but the full impact of the floods was still unknown as areas had been completely cut off.
District commissioner Harrison Lende said two people had died in Chikwawa and about 100 homes had been washed away.
His counterpart in Nsanje, Tobby Solomon, said about 300 houses had been washed away in his area. Malawi’s biggest river, the Shire, had risen so high that floods in villages on the nearby island of Nyachikadza were imminent.
”Imagine, even the main road is cut off. It is very dangerous to drive,” he said.
The two districts have had rainfall of up to 9cm on some days but the meteorological office predicted that the rains would ease off. — Sapa-AFP