Cyclone Kenneth: Mozambique faces ‘humanitarian catastrophe’ as tropical storm set to hit coast

Mozambique is facing a “looming humanitarian catastrophe” as another tropical cyclone is expected to hit the country’s coast, just over a month after Cyclone Idai devastated the country.

Cyclone Kenneth is expected to bring torrential rainfall, strong winds, and waves of several metres to the southern African nation, which is one of the world’s poorest countries.

It comes soon after Cyclone Idai struck the southern port city of Beira in March, killing hundreds and leaving thousands homeless.

Mozambique’s National Institute of Disaster Management said around 682,500 people could be at risk from the cyclone in the northern provinces of Cabo Delgado and Niassa.

More than 1,000 people were reportedly killed by Cyclone Idai in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi, with an estimated $1bn (£778m) in damage caused by the storm.

"It's going to make landfall tomorrow afternoon in Cabo Delgado (province), on the northeastern coast of Mozambique, and it is going to be a cyclone with wind speeds which could be 140 km per hour (87 miles per hour)," said Jan Vermeulen, from the South African Weather Service.

The cyclone is also predicted to hit Tanzania, where authorities have warned people to evacuate from southern coastal regions.

"We've decided to evacuate all residents of valleys and other low-lying areas, and we advise them to seek refuge at public spaces," Mtwara regional commissioner Gelasius Byakanwa told reporters.

Meteorologist Eric Holthaus warned that “Kenneth is still rapidly strengthening” before it makes landfall.

“This is a looming humanitarian catastrophe,” he said.

“Cyclone Idai hit Mozambique just 5 weeks ago. More than 1,000 people died, and nearly 3,000,000 people affected… Back-to-back storms this bad [are] unimaginable.”

Cyclone Kenneth is expected to hit further north than the last storm but it will spread the damage around Mozambique and complicate work for health officials and international aid agencies who have been battling cholera in the wake of Idai.

The International Federation of the Red Cross said its volunteers in the north of the country were alerting communities in areas where the risk of flooding, erosion and landslides is high.

The World Food Programme said it was working with other agencies and the Mozambican government on an emergency plan.

The National Directorate for the Management of Water Resources has recommended that people living in areas at risk of flooding should immediately move to higher ground.

Cyclones of the strength of Idai and Kenneth are rare in close succession, as only three of equivalent strength have hit Mozambique since 1950.

The strongest cyclone to hit Mozambique was Cyclone Leon-Eline in 2000.

Agencies contributed to this report