The National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD) is appealing to flood victims in Maputo province not to leave the accommodation centers where they are sheltering without prior guidance from the competent authorities.

The appeal comes as there have been several cases of people leaving reception centers to take shelter with relatives because their homes have been flooded due to rising river flows in Maputo province.

At another session of the Emergency Operational Committee in the city of Xai-Xai, the capital of Gaza province, the president of INGD, Luísa Meque, explained, as quoted by Folha de Maputo, that in view of the forecast for more rain in the south of the country, those affected are advised to avoid returning to areas prone to flooding.
He said that around 8,000 people were still in accommodation centers in Maputo province.

"This number is falling because some people are retiring to their relatives' homes," she said.

"As a precaution, we recommend that people continue to wait until this wave passes," he said.

The INGD spokesperson in Maputo province, Nelma de Araújo, also made the same appeal during the Linha directa program on Rádio Moçambique, the national broadcaster.

De Araújo reported that more rain is forecast for the city and provinces of Maputo, Inhambane and Gaza, hence the importance of prudence and caution when making the decision to return to their areas of origin.