Malawians seek assistance as fears rise over further flooding

Thousands of stranded women and children in the southern part of Malawi are seeking humanitarian aid after severe flooding and heavy rains devastated the region, destroying homes and infrastructure.

The Malawi floods have left a trail of destruction in the country’s Chikwawa District since last week. Life has become unbearable for many of the women whose gardens and homes have been washed away by the flood waters.

Agriculture in most of the flooded areas has been badly affected, with more than forty two thousand hectares of farmland destroyed.

Roads and bridges have also been destroyed, cutting off many of the locals from the nearest commercial city.

Those severely affected by the heavy rains and flooding are currently seeking humanitarian assistance at the Chikwawa District evacuation center.

The citizens are asking the government to provide them with tents, kitchen utensils and also agricultural inputs to make life a bit easy for them.

Meanwhile, the Department of Meteorology and Climate Change has warned of further heavy downpours that could trigger flash floods in flood prone districts including Nsanje, Phalombe, Mangochi, Salima and Karonga, among others.

With response efforts already stretched to meet current humanitarian needs, the risk of further flooding could prompt more fears.