Devastating Floods Hit Mozambique: A Crisis Unfolds

Mozambique faces severe flooding following heavy rains, resulting in at least 13 deaths, with numbers expected to rise. The floods have affected over half a million people, submerging towns and cutting off access to the capital Maputo. UNICEF reports a significant impact on children.

Mozambique is battling severe flooding that has claimed at least 13 lives, a number expected to rise in the coming days. Heavy rains caused rivers and dams to overflow, submerging towns and impacting more than half a million people.

The capital, Maputo, was particularly hard hit, with floodwaters cutting off the city from the rest of the country. Shopkeepers like Justino Zita are struggling to cope with the devastation brought to their businesses.

UNICEF's representative in Mozambique, Mary Louise Eagleton, anticipates the toll on children to be significant as the waters recede. With comparisons drawn to the 2000 floods that killed around 700, officials credit early-warning systems for potentially saving lives.

(With inputs from agencies.)