About 1.85 million people have now been affected by Cyclone Idai and its aftermath in Mozambique alone, the United Nations’ humanitarian agency OCHA said on Tuesday.
“Some will be in critical, life threatening situations. Some will sadly have lost their livelihoods, which whilst an appalling tragedy is not immediately life threatening,” OCHA coordinator Sebastian Rhodes Stampa said.
Over 700 people have died and 110,000 displaced after the storm devastated parts of Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Malawi last week. Many were forced to flee with nothing as the flood waters rose.
Children, the elderly and people with disabilities who are less mobile are likely to have been left behind or stranded, while women and children are expected to have borne the brunt of the storm.
One of the main concerns facing air workers now is the spread of disease.
“It’s only a matter of time before water-borne diseases such as cholera, typhoid and diarrhoea start spreading,” Claire Rogers the CEO of charity World Vision Australia said.
The lack of experienced health-care professionals has been a notable challenge in many areas.
Currently, humanitarian workers are worked with limited supplies but aid is slowly coming in to affected areas.
In Beira, Mozambique, one of the areas hardest hit by the crisis, Red Cross teams have provided shelter supplies like tarps and blankets to more than 3,000 people.
A shipment of aid including kitchen supplies kits, sleeping mats, and water purification tablets for an additional 37,000 people is expected to arrive this week.
Two field hospitals are also currently on their way to Mozambique.
However, the full extent of the damage remains unknown, as humanitarian organisations struggle to provide enough aid to support the hundreds of thousands in need.
“We can determine the size, we can’t determine the circumstance. So we’re now going out on the ground, dropping people off from helicopters to determine what the critical needs are,” Stampa said.
