Violent winds of up to 140kph lashed the East African island nation of Comoros overnight, killing three people, authorities said yesterday, as Cyclone Kenneth swept towards flood-battered Mozambique.
In Comoros, the winds caused widespread power outages in the northern part of the main island, Grande Comore, and the capital Moroni as well as on the island of Anjouan, residents said.
By yesterday afternoon, the cyclone was making its way to Mozambique, just over a month after Cyclone Idai tore through central Mozambique, virtually flattening the port city of Beira, flooding an area the size of Luxembourg and killing more than 1,000 people across the region.
Kenneth may strengthen before it makes landfall on the continent, said Dipuo Tawana, forecaster at the South African Weather Service.
It could bring 7 to 9m waves and a 3m storm surge, she said, and was likely to linger over Mozambique, dumping rain until late Monday evening, bringing a risk of intense flooding.
“The rainfall that we forecast for the next four days in the northeastern part of Mozambique – we have between 500 and 1,000mm of rain,” Tawana said.
In Comoros, a Reuters correspondent saw fallen trees and debris from homes scattered over streets, and houses with their roofs torn off.
President Azali Assoumani told reporters that three people had been killed and several others injured.
A few taxis were driving around the centre of Moroni yesterday morning as police and soldiers cleared blocked roads.
Government offices and schools were closed.
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