17 December 2007
Maputo — The town of Nhamayabue, capital of Mutarara district, in the central Mozambican province of Tete, has been flooded following the torrential rains that have been falling in the area since November, reports Monday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias".
The Mutarara district administrator, Alexandre Faife, told the paper "we've been practically cut off from the rest of the province and from other parts of the country since early November".
The closure of the Dona Ana bridge over the Zambezi has made matters worse for the inhabitants of Mutarara. This is a rail bridge, but it does have a walkway that pedestrians and cyclists could use - however, it has been closed as part of the reconstruction of the Sena railway from Beira to the Moatize coal mines in Tete.
In theory the river can be crossed at Mutarara by ferry - but the ferry has been out of service since October due to a technical problem with the landing ramps. The district government has now been forced to use small boats belonging to the country's relief agency, the National Disasters Management Institute (INGC) to transport people and goods across the river.
Mutarara is extremely vulnerable to flooding since the district is at the confluence of two major rivers, the Zambezi and the Shire.
Meanwhile, further south, Buzi district in Sofala province remains isolated from the rest of the country, by flooding on the Buzi river, which has cut the roads entering the district. According to district administrator Sergio Moiane, the river was six metres high on Sunday at the localities of Gradja and Estaquinha, well above flood alert level of 5.5 metres.
Here too a ferry that normally guarantees the river crossing is out of order. Among other losses, this has made it impossible for truck loads of sugar cane to reach the Mafambisse sugar mill.
In Nhamatanda district, also in Sofala, the river Pungue has been rising sharply, and there are fears that this river too may burst its banks.
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