31 January 2005
Maputo — Flooding on the lower Zambezi in central Mozambique continued over the weekend, and on Monday the National Water Board (DNA) warned that the situation is likely to worsen.
At the town of Caia the level of the Zambezi rose from 5.5 to 5.7 metres between Saturday and Monday. Flood alert level at Caia is five metres.
Further downstream, at Marromeu, where flood alert level is 4.75 metres, the river had risen to 5.22 metres by Monday morning. 200 hectares of maize fields in Marromeu were inundated during the weekend.
Rain in the Zambezi basin is continuing, but less heavily than in the previous week. Nonetheless, the DNA fears that the river is bound to continue rising, particularly with all the major tributaries contributing large amounts of water.
More water has also been released from the Cahora Bassa dam.
The discharges from the dam increased from 3,196 to 3,629 cubic metres a second between Saturday and Sunday.
The threat of flooding also hangs over the Pungue valley in Sofala province. The Pungue is expected to continue rising over the next 24 hours, menacing low lying areas in Nhamatanda district.
The major rivers in the south of the country - the Save, the Limpopo and the Incomati - are also rising, but so far none of them are anywhere near flood alert level.
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