Cyclone Bears Down On Mozambique Coast

MAPUTO, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th Feb, 2017 ) - Mozambique braced for flooding, high winds, sea surges and evacuations on Wednesday as Cyclone Dineo neared the coast, with forecasters predicting widespread damage.

Dineo was set to make landfall in the southern province of Inhambane in the evening, packing winds of about 130 kilometres (80 miles) an hour, the South African Weather Service (SAWS) said. Mozambique's meterological services upgraded the storm to a tropical cyclone on Wednesday afternoon as strong winds began to slam into coastal areas.

Torrential rain, flooding and a coastal storm surge were expected, with SAWS warning that Dineo was "a formidable storm system which has the potential to cause much damage to coastal and inland infrastructure".

The Mozambique Red Cross dispatched emergency relief supplies and 350 workers to areas likely to be in the impact zone, where rivers are already at flood level. "Many of the districts likely to be hit have been inundated by above-normal rainfall since early January," Jamie Le Sueur, Red Cross disaster management coordinator for southern Africa, said.

The Red Cross warned that flooding could also contaminate water sources and spread sickness after the storm passes.