Tropical Cyclone Freddy

• As of March 16, Tropical Cyclone Freddy had killed more than 500 people in Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar since it first made landfall in Africa in late February. In Malawi alone, the death toll rose to 507, with at least 537 people still missing, as of March 22. A mudslide in Malawi’s Cilobwe township in Blantyre district killed at least 85.
• In southern Malawi, Cyclone Freddy displaced at least 553,614 people, many of whom are sheltering in 543 sites.
• According to Save the Children, more than 490,000 children in Malawi are unable to attend school due to damage caused by Cyclone Freddy.
• Cyclone Freddy’s second landfall affected some 253,466 people across Mozambique’s Zambezia, Sofala, Tete, Manica and Niassa provinces. This is in addition to the 239,000 people affected by floods and Freddy’s first landfall. UNOCHA says 886,000 people in Mozambique are affected by a combination of cholera, flooding and Freddy.
• Nearly 299,000 people have been affected in Madagascar, with 226,000 in the southeast, and over 72,600 in the southwest.
• In Mozambique, rainfall from Freddy reached more than 23 inches (600 millimeters) in some places.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that more than 300 health facilities have been destroyed or flooded in Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique. Public health risks have increased.

According to UNOCHA, damage to agriculture in Mozambique is a concern “as 92,000 hectares [227,336 acres] of crops have been affected including in areas where 400,000 people are already food insecure.”

All three affected countries were experiencing food insecurity prior to Cyclone Freddy which may be worsened by the disaster. According to the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in their March 2023 Food Assistance Outlook Brief, Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique will experience varying levels of acute food insecurity by September 2023.

In Malawi, Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders says the medical needs are immense. They redirected some staff from their regular project for cervical cancer to assist emergency teams at the Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital. Additionally, the convergence of multiple crises is compounding a severe humanitarian situation, especially in Mozambique and Malawi. In Mozambique, the disaster damaged at least 52 health units. The WHO reports that more than 300 health facilities were destroyed or flooded in Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique.

The threat of a resurgence of cholera remains a serious concern in Malawi as the country endured its largest outbreak last year. In Mozambique, the cholera outbreak continues to spread, with the number of confirmed cholera cases reaching nearly 8,500 as of March 12.

Damage assessments are ongoing but early reports indicate significant impacts on infrastructure and housing that will negatively impact access to affected populations and create shelter needs.

According to Malawi’s DoDMA in their March 15 Situation Report, “Public infrastructure such as schools, health facilities, and district and main roads have been damaged in all affected districts.” Additionally, “Most of the areas across the affected districts remain inaccessible, making it difficult for the councils to conduct rapid assessments to establish the total number of people affected by the Cyclone.”

Mozambique’s National Institute for Disaster Risk Management (INGD) reported that more than 48,000 houses were partially or totally destroyed and around 1,561 classrooms were also damaged. Additionally, the cyclone caused significant damage to health centers, water and sanitation systems, and roads. For example, the main road that runs north-south in Mozambique is flooded just north of Quelimane city in Zambezia province.

The Madagascar Red Cross says the cyclone damaged or destroyed many public and private buildings. Yet, according to UNOCHA, while buildings are flooded in the cities of Morombe and Toliara, the impact of the storm was less than expected in Madagascar and there’s little visible wind damage in the villages along the western coast.