Death toll from Freddy, one of the longest-lasting cyclones ever, jumps to 190 in Malawi

Tropical storm Freddy, one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the southern hemisphere, has killed 190 people in Malawi after tearing through southern Africa for the second time in a month, Malawi’s disaster management agency said on Tuesday.

The commercial center of Blantyre was the hardest hit district, and floods and heavy rains damaged roads and bridges, hampering relief operations.

Freddy has also left a trail of destruction in Mozambique after making landfall twice over the weekend.

The death toll in Malawi rose to 190 from the 99 reported on Monday, the Department of Disaster Management Affairs said.

The rescue operation was difficult

As heavy rains continue to lash the country, 584 people have been injured and 37 are still missing, the department said in a statement.

A family in Blantyre is counting the cost of the storm as they wait to collect the body of a relative from
Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital.

Flooding and rain have hampered rescue operations and made it difficult to get help for those affected, aid agencies said.

“It was a challenging operation because there were landslides and people were stuck in the mud,” said Estere Tsoka, an emergency specialist at the UN children’s agency UNICEF in Malawi.

“People are trying to find a place to hang in there for a while.”

Freddy hit central Mozambique on Saturday, tearing roofs off buildings and causing flooding around the port of Quelimane, before moving into Malawi with heavy rains that triggered landslides.

The damage and loss of life in Mozambique is not yet clear.

It is the second time the record-breaking cyclone – which has wreaked havoc in southern Africa since late February – has made landfall in Africa. It also struck the island nations of Madagascar and Reunion as it crossed the ocean.

The cyclone, which formed in the first week of February, has grown a record seven times and has the highest accumulated cyclone energy, or ACE, which is a measurement of a cyclone’s energy released over time. Freddy recorded more energy in his lifetime than in an entire US hurricane season.

Freddy first developed near Australia in early February and passed through the entire southern Indian Ocean. It is the longest tropical cyclone on record. The United Nations weather agency has convened a panel of experts to determine whether it has broken the 31-day record set by Hurricane John in 1994.