Relief efforts are underway across Zimbabwe after heavy rains triggered severe flooding, killing at least 83 people and destroying more than 1,300 homes, government and humanitarian agencies said on Thursday.
Torrential rains this month have caused flooding in all ten provinces, with Manicaland near the Mozambique border the hardest hit. Bridges and roads have been washed out, complicating access to affected communities.
In an interview with China Global Television Network, Nathan Nkomo, chief director of the Department of Civil Protection, said, "[For] the artisanal miners, they had their mining holes along the waterways and they were filled. It's like most of them were buried in those. Some [of the toll] is a result of lightning. Lighting has also got a big toll on that figure."
Authorities added that several others drowned while attempting to cross flooded rivers.
The Zimbabwe Red Cross Society, in coordination with the Department of Civil Protection, is leading emergency response efforts. Relief teams are delivering tents, tarpaulins, blankets, hygiene kits and medical supplies to displaced families.
Mathias Begede, programs director of the Zimbabwe Red Cross Society, said, "We have placed our response teams on high alert and are also repositioning emergency supplies such as tents, tarpaulins, blankets and hygiene kits and also first aid materials across the country."
Local community networks are being mobilized to disseminate weather forecasts and warn residents against crossing swollen rivers.
Although water levels have begun to recede in some of the hardest-hit areas, authorities remain on high alert as the meteorological services department forecasts further rainfall in the coming days. Relief teams continue to monitor dam water levels and rainfall patterns to issue early warnings and evacuation advisories.
Zimbabwe intensifies relief operations as floods kill over 80, destroy homes
