The death toll from storm Eloise rose to at least 12 on Monday, according to figures from authorities across south-eastern Africa, where heavy winds, rain and flooding have also destroyed buildings and crops. A tropical cyclone when it made landfall at Mozambique’s central province of Sofala on Saturday, Eloise subsequently weakened to a tropical storm as it moved inland to dump rain on Zimbabwe, eSwatini, South Africa and Botswana. Six people were killed in Mozambique, the country’s National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD) reported, while the number of displaced people rose to more than 8,000. Homes, crops and infrastructure were also damaged, flooded or destroyed. The death toll from flooding in eSwatini now stands at two, according to police, while three people had been reported killed in Zimbabwe and one in Madagascar. Ongoing rains, though lightening, threatened further floods.
SOURCE: BUSINESS DAY LIVE