Several suburban neighborhoods in the city of Beira are flooded and the National Road Number Six (N6) has been cut off as a result of the rain, which has been falling heavily since dawn on Wednesday.

The scenario is the result of the approach of Cyclone Freddy. The city of Beira, capital of Sofala province, is located in a swampy area, below sea level, and is prone to flooding.

Some families, especially in Manga, Vaz and Ndunda, areas with poor sanitation systems, are already abandoning their homes for safe areas and accommodation centers.

"This rain is already making us worry, because it doesn't stop; our houses are already flooded; with Cyclone Freddy approaching, the situation will be unbearable," lamented Felismina João, quoted by VOA.

For Leonel Domingos, "the floods are making it difficult for people to get around and cutting off access routes, and could contribute to the proliferation of water-borne diseases," in the city, which has already registered four cases of cholera.

Road cut

National Road Number 6, which connects the city of Beira to the rest of the country, has been cut off from the district of Dondo.

"We're monitoring it at the moment. The water has receded a little, but it could rise at any moment. Traffic will be re-established when the water level drops," said the provincial delegate of the National Roads Administration, Egídio Morais.

Hurricane Freddy will hit the Mozambican coast this Thursday, affecting the provinces of Sofala, Zambézia and Inhambane.

The National Meteorological Institute said that Cyclone Freddy has weakened to the stage of a tropical depression and is in the continental region of Madagascar, moving at a speed of 30 km towards the Mozambique Channel.

The same system will gradually intensify until it reaches the Mozambican coast in the tropical storm stage, with rainfall of over 200mm/24h, strong winds gusting up to 120km/h, in the districts of Machanga, Chibabava and Buzi, in Sofala.

In Inhambane province, "Freddy" had affected the districts of Funhalouro, Mabote, Homoine, Morrumbene, Massinga, Vilankulo, Inhassoro, Govuro, Panda, the towns of Maxixe and Inhambane.