Mozambique: Cyclone Jude rips through infrastructure
Mozambique has been hit by Cyclone Jude, a tropical storm carrying 120km per hour winds and torrential rain leading to widespread damage to infrastructure across coastal regions of the country.
On March 11th, Africa News reported that the cyclone has caused flooding which has left many people homeless and without power.
The storm made landfall in the early hours of the morning, leaving many unprepared for the immediate consequences, according to Mozambique National Institute of Meteorology (MNIM).
According to a local in the coastal city of Nacala, the rain; “doesn’t stop falling; it started around 1am, and they (MNIM) are saying it’s going to rain for 24 hours, and the wind and thunder doesn’t stop.”
This is the third cyclone to have hit the country in the past six months.
In December 2024 and January 2025, two other large cyclones hit the coast leading to a situation that UNICEF has described as “very bad”, leaving children in a particularly vulnerable position.
UNICEF has been working in tandem with the government in order to try and distribute emergency aid kits and vital medical resources to those most in need.
However, the cyclone has exacerbated an already desperate situation in Mozambique as the country suffers the consequences of political and civil unrest in the wake of elections held in October 2024.
As Maghrebi reported on January 5th, thousands have fled into neighbouring Malawi and Eswatini in order to escape the violence and crime that has spread across the country.
Protests were sparked as opposition parties disputed upholding by a national court of the victory of the incumbent Frelimo Party who have been in power since Mozambique gained its independence from Portugal in 1975.
Since October, the country has now suffered three cyclones during a period when coordinating a cohesive response has been a challenge due to political tensions and civil unrest.
Whilst the primary effects of Cyclone Jude may already be being felt, the secondary and tertiary effects may last for months to come.
Authorities fear the spread of water born diseases such as cholera, diarrhoea and malaria.
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