Mozambique – Flash Report 16 - Tropical Cyclone Eloise (January 2021)

The landfall of Tropical Cyclone Eloise in the night of 23 January 2021 and Tropical Storm Chalane on 30 December 2020 has affected Sofala, Manica, the southern part of Zambezia, Inhambane, and Gaza provinces. Sofala was the most affected province, with Buzi, Dondo Nhamatanda, and Chibabava districts reporting significant damages to shelters, while Caia, also in Sofala province reported some damages in four of the resettlement sites assessed in the district. The Province of Manica, more specifically Sussundenga district, also reported some damages after the tropical cyclone, the southern part of Zambezia also reported damages to shelters in resettlement sites.

Following these events, a rapid assessment was conducted by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in collaboration with the National Institute for Disaster Management and Risk Reduction (INGD), between the 24 to 26 January 2021. The assessment focuses on understanding the extent of damages to shelters and facilities across all 70 existing resettlement sites in Sofala, Manica, and Zambezia Provinces, which were established in the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Idai in 2019. These resettlement sites are particularly exposed and vulnerable to damages as a result of environmental factors, since durable solutions and build back better initiatives are not yet comprehensively supported and implemented at this point in time. Therefore, damages were reported in resettlement sites where people displaced by Cyclone Idai live, with thousands of tents and temporary shelters destroyed, as well as permanent structures such as schools and hospitals.

As a result of the impact of Tropical Cyclone Eloise, 8,755 families had their tents and shelters destroyed/partially destroyed. Of these, 6,790 are located in Sofala, 1,695 in Manica, and 270 in Zambezia provinces. The affected districts are Buzi (4,619 households), Dondo (1,230 households), Chibabava (773 households), Caia (66 households), and Nhamatanda (102) all in Sofala province;  Sussundenga (1,695 households)in Manica province; and Maganja da Costa (143 households), Namacurra (62 households), and Nicoadala (65 households) all in Zambezia province. In total, five resettlement sites out of the 70 resettlement sites assessed are still inaccessible by road due to flooding as of 26 January 2021, these are: Inhajou 2019 (446 households), and Nhamacunta (430 households) in Buzi district, and Savane (283 households), all in Sofala province; Tossene Choma (339 households) and Ngurue (138 households) in Sussundenga of Manica (households figures for the inaccessible sites were extracted from the Multi-sectoral Location Assessment [MSLA] Round 18, conducted immediately after Tropical Storm Chalane).