Maputo, 2 Mar (AIM) - Mozambique's National Water Board (DNA) has announced flood alerts on the three main rivers in central Mozambique, the Zambezi, the Pungue and the Buzi.

The DNA is warning people to avoid the flood prone areas of these river basins, and not to attempt to cross the swollen rivers. One prominent local figure, the traditional chief of the Madibunhana region in Manica province, drowned last week when trying to cross the Lucite river, one of the branches of the Buzi, in a canoe.

The Zambezi is not yet in full flood, and the Cahora Bassa dam has kept its discharges at a steady 1,800 metres a second. The dam lake is thus acting as a buffer, absorbing much of the water flowing in from Zimbabwe and Zambia.

The rising waters in the Pungue basin have left at least 155 families isolated and surrounded by water in the Muda-Mufo and Metuchira regions of Sofala province, reports Tuesday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias". They have sought shelter in a local primary school.

The national relief agency, the National Disaster Management Institute (INGC) has provided 100 tents for these families, and 700 mosquito nets, aimed primarily at protecting young children and pregnant women.

A water purifier has also been sent to the area, and slabs for making pit latrines.

A smaller river, the Pompue, has broken its banks in Chemba district, isolating the administrative post of Chiramba, and threatening to cut the road between the towns of Caia and Sena.

Luis Pacheco, the Sofala provincial INGC delegate, told reporters that the roads to Buzi district remain cut, and warned journalists not to attempt the hazardous journey.
(AIM)