Cyclone Idai Leaves Over 1.8Mln People In Need For Assistance In Mozambique - UN Spokesman

Fakhir Rizvi Published March 23, 2019 | 12:50 AM

UNITED NATIONS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd March, 2019) More than 1.8 million people are in need for humanitarian assistance in Mozambique in the wake of tropical cyclone Idai, United Nations deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said in a press briefing on Friday.

"The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that more than 1.8 million people need assistance in Mozambique," Haq told reporters.

The UN International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Henrietta Fore arrived in Mozambique earlier to evaluate the Idai's impact and concluded that the situation in the country remains critical.

The Mozambique government said at least 242 people have been killed, and more than 1,400 have been injured as a result of the tropical cyclone.

Earlier on Friday, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said that the death toll from Idai in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi has increased to 430.

The cyclone hit Mozambique last Friday and then continued to neighboring Zimbabwe and Malawi, triggering floods and landfalls as well as causing multiple casualties.