February 22, 2023 at 01:07 GMT
Updated 2 hours ago
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Satellite images show Tropical Cyclone Freddy approaching Madagascar
At least one person has died after a tropical cyclone battered the east coast of Madagascar, with torrential rain and strong winds ripping off roofs from houses and triggering a storm surge.
Cyclone Freddy made landfall on Tuesday, weeks after another tropical storm killed 33 people and left thousands homeless.
Schools were closed and traffic halted.
Previously, Freddy had caused some damage in Mauritius and flooded beach hotels.
The island nation in the Indian Ocean is particularly prone to hurricanes. It is hit by an average of 1.5 cyclones each year, the highest rate in Africa, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
The cyclone weakened slightly as it made landfall in Madagascar, off the southeast coast of Africa, with wind gusts exceeding 130 km/h (81 mph). The country’s weather service warned that torrential rain would continue on its way.
“The sea remains very rough… and a significant risk of coastal flooding will remain overnight,” it said.
A 27-year-old man drowned near the port of Mahanoro before the storm made landfall, officials said.
Officials also said 7,000 people had been evacuated from the coastal area just down Freddy’s path as a precaution, and warnings that waves could reach over 8m (26ft) were issued by the International Federation of the Red Cross.
Some people used sandbags to weigh down their roofs as a precaution.
“All the doors and windows started shaking,” said Tahina, a resident of Mananjary, a coastal town of around 25,000 people 30 km from where the cyclone first made landfall.
She had fled her home with her parents and three children to find shelter in her husband’s office.
“At least five houses next to us have lost their roofs,” Tahina told AFP.
Pascal Salle sobbed as he surveyed the damage caused by Freddy – who ripped a window off his house and turned his garden into a ‘sandfield’.
“It’s a repeat performance. I can’t take this every year, it’s not possible. Batsirai and Emnati in 2022, Freddy in 2023… Who says another one doesn’t fall on us in 15 days?” he said.
Last month, powerful Storm Cheneso swept across northeastern Madagascar, bringing violent winds and downpours that caused widespread flooding, killing at least 33 people and driving tens of thousands from their homes.
Mananjary is still recovering from the devastation caused by last year’s Cyclone Batsirai, which killed more than 130 people across Madagascar.
Cyclone Freddy is expected to cross the ocean from Madagascar and make landfall in Mozambique before possibly heading further inland to hit Zimbabwe, UN officials say.