Source: More flash floods loom – DailyNews Live

Farayi Machamire      8 March 2017

HARARE – Zimbabwe’s must brace for more flash floods as heavy rains are
set to continue in some parts of the country in the coming weeks, the
Meteorological Services Department (MSD) has warned.

“Flooding remains a threat,” the department said in an alert issued
yesterday.

It further cautioned that “motorists are advised not to park their cars
under trees to avoid damage from falling trees . . . (as) the incessant
rains that the country is receiving have made the soils saturated”.

This comes as the Civil Protection Unit has advised the public to be on
high alert and on the lookout for landslides.

So far, lightning and drowning have claimed 246 lives since October last
year, while floods, which have been declared a national disaster, have
left nearly 2 000 homeless. Also, at least five major bridges have been
washed away making key roads in many parts of the country totally
impassable, according to Transport minister Joram Gumbo.

Government has since appealed to international donors to help those
affected by the floods.

Meanwhile, the powerful Tropical Cyclone Enawo which was forecast to hit
Zimbabwe and has been intensifying off the north eastern edge of
Madagascar, was yesterday said to be moving toward a dangerous landfall on
the island nation.

Meteo Madagascar – Madagascar’s meteorological department – yesterday
issued an alert warning residents to move away from homes near the water’s
edge and seek shelter in sturdy buildings.

However, the MSD has maintained that the formidable storm, packing
estimated winds as high as 140 miles per hour as of Monday afternoon
eastern time, is still too far from the mainland to have any effect on
Zimbabwe.