Foreign aid begins flowing into cyclone-hit southern Africa
Relief efforts for Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi were initially stifled by airport closures.
![Soldiers hand out food supplies in Zimbabwe (Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/AP) Soldiers hand out food supplies in Zimbabwe (Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/AP)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ipanews_02b7ecb8-f86a-42be-b591-4eeccc3bfbe4_1-5.jpg)
By Matt Sedensky, Associated Press
International aid has started trickling into the east African countries of Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi to ease the humanitarian crisis created by floodwaters from Cyclone Idai.
Relief efforts that were initially stifled by airport closures slowly gained pace, and foreign governments began pledging aid to help the region recover from the worst flooding in decades.
“Everyone is doubling, tripling, quadrupling whatever they were planning,” said Caroline Haga of the Red Cross in Beira, Mozambique, referring to supplies and aid workers.
“It’s much larger than anyone could ever anticipate.”
The European Union released 3.5 million euros (£3 million) in emergency aid, and the UK pledged up to £6 million. Neighbouring Tanzania’s military airlifted 238 tons of food and medicine.
Matthew Pickard of the humanitarian organisation Care said the response to Idai has been similar to previous natural disasters.
Local authorities and international non-governmental organisations worked their way to the area in the first days, with additional aid destined to arrive soon after.
The slow-moving catastrophe of the flooding and the inability to access some of the hardest-hit areas has limited the ability of some to see the scale of the cyclone, but aid will spike as the details become clearer, Mr Pickard said.
“Over the next few days we’ll learn just how big it is,” he said from Malawi. “These are countries that are not usually making headlines and they’re making headlines. With the story comes people’s intent to respond empathetically.”
Sacha Myers of Save the Children, speaking from Mozambique, described rising floodwaters, “rivers and dams bursting their banks” and a death toll in the hundreds and rising.
She was awaiting the arrival of a cargo plane carrying 51 tons of emergency supplies, but said getting them where they needed to go remained difficult with roads washed away or submerged and few options for storage in dry areas.
“We’re having an unfolding crisis that’s getting worse and worse,” she said.
The United Nations is deploying resources too, deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said, but logistics remained challenging and the hardest hit areas remained inaccessible.
As better data emerges from the disaster zone, donors will be standing by to make money and other resources such as medicine available, said E Anne Peterson of the non-profit health organisation Americares.
“It’s early and a really big disaster gets attention fast, and the more media covers it, the more people realise there is a need and the more likely we are to see them getting engaged,” she said.
Ilan Noy, chairman in the economics of disasters at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, said aid was likely to flow from dozens of countries to the African nations.
How much is pledged and when, he said, correlates to the media coverage a disaster gets, not to mention factors such as the geostrategic interests and previous colonial ties of an affected country.
Ultimately, the figures that are announced can bear little meaning, with the numbers typically stand-ins for the value of salaries and supplies sent overseas.
“They don’t have enough helicopters or they don’t have enough doctors,” Mr Noy offered as an example. “In that emergency phase, it doesn’t really matter how you count it. You need resources. You don’t need cash.”
Press Association
Follow @Independent_ie
![The Al Noor mosque in Christchurch as it reopened following the March 15 mass shooting (Mark Baker/AP) The Al Noor mosque in Christchurch as it reopened following the March 15 mass shooting (Mark Baker/AP)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ipanews_ac16b516-85f4-44c8-8026-9c4cdf5d2a8b_1.jpg)
Worshippers visits Christchurch mosque as it reopens
By Associated Press Reporters Worshippers have visited a New Zealand mosque as it reopened for the first time after dozens of people died there in a mass shooting.
![President Donald Trump sparked confusion in Washington (Carolyn Kaster/AP) President Donald Trump sparked confusion in Washington (Carolyn Kaster/AP)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ipanews_e097903f-9840-4ed9-af64-275a0137dfba_1.jpg)
Confusion as Trump intervenes on North Korea sanctions with tweet
By Deb Riechmann and Jill Colvin, Associated Press President Donald Trump tweeted on Friday that he had reversed his administration’s decision to slap new sanctions on North Korea — a move which took officials at the US Treasury Department by…
![China’s President Xi Jinping. Photo: Reuters China’s President Xi Jinping. Photo: Reuters](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/2017-08-07_bus_33517970_I1.jpg)
Huge blast at chemicals factory kills 62 in China
David Stanway An explosion at a pesticide plant in eastern China has killed 62 people, state media said late last night, with 34 people critically injured and 28 missing, the latest casualties in a series of industrial accidents that has angered the public.
- Most Viewed
- Most Shared
![INQUEST Birmin.jpg File photo dated 22/11/74 of the outside of the Mulberry Bush public house and surrounding buildings in Birmingham the day after the bombings. Photo: PA/PA Wire](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/INQUEST20Birmin.jpg)
Convicted bomber names four men allegedly involved in 1974 IRA Birmingham pub attacks Britain
![345345 Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Photo: Reuters](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/345345.jpg)
Robert Mueller sends Russia investigation report to US attorney general North America
![worldjacinda.jpg New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Photo: Kyodo News via AP](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/worldjacinda-1.jpg)
TV host criticised for mocking New Zealand PM's accent during moving speech about… Australasia
![fazakerly.jpg (Photo: Google Maps)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/fazakerly.jpg)
Teacher sacked after calling one pupil 'paedophile', making explicit comments in class Britain
![18captain.jpg Ethiopian Airlines crew members mourn as pallbearers carry coffins of their colleagues at the Holy Trinity Cathedral Orthodox church in Addis Ababa. Photo: Tiksa Negeri/Reuters](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/18captain-1.jpg)
Indonesia's national airline seeking cancellation of multibillion-pound order for Boeing… Asia-Pacific
![GettyImages-663874486.jpg The Northern Lights over Kirkjufell](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/GettyImages-663874486.jpg)
'Good chance' Northern Lights phenomenon could be visible over Ireland this weekend Irish News
![7 NEWS PL39348461CC MICK MCCARTHY.jpg FAI CEO John Delaney. Photo: Gareth Chaney, Collins](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/720NEWS20PL39348461CC20MICK20MCCARTHY-1.jpg)
Rock and Coveney in war of words over FAI boss John Delaney's €100,000 bridging loan Politics
![ipanews_e3f2d1d3-d1ad-4ff1-ab16-ec92398ff12d_1 Barbra Streisand has said she believes the two men who alleged Michael Jackson sexually abused them as children (Yui Mok/PA)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ipanews_e3f2d1d3-d1ad-4ff1-ab16-ec92398ff12d_1.jpg)
Barbra Streisand says she ‘absolutely’ believes Michael Jackson’s accusers Movies
Uri Geller vows to stop Brexit telepathically And Finally
![GettyImages-538146782.jpg Stock photo](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/GettyImages-538146782.jpg)
Anger over pupils' 'sins' listed on artwork at Mass, claims it breaches 'GDPR and… Irish News
![Independent.ie](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/logo-independent-c-2.png)
The Daily Digest
Editors Choice
![Vicky Phelan Vicky Phelan](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/H6.6k-2.jpg)
Eilish O'Regan: 'Patients have right to question why change is taking so long'
![Uncertain times: Civilians walk together near Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province, in Syria. Photo: REUTERS/Rodi Said Uncertain times: Civilians walk together near Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province, in Syria. Photo: REUTERS/Rodi Said](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/2019-03-19_wor_48852973_I1-2.jpg)
How the resilience of Syrian women and girls is inspiring a hard-fought battle for gender equality
![Benie des Dieux ridden by Ruby Walsh Benie des Dieux ridden by Ruby Walsh](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Benie20des20Dieux20Ruby20Walsh20Read-Only-3.jpg)
Declan Lynch: 'Ruby, you gotta know when to walk away, know when to run'
![The Al Noor mosque in Christchurch as it reopened following the March 15 mass shooting (Mark Baker/AP) The Al Noor mosque in Christchurch as it reopened following the March 15 mass shooting (Mark Baker/AP)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ipanews_ac16b516-85f4-44c8-8026-9c4cdf5d2a8b_1-1.jpg)
Worshippers visits Christchurch mosque as it reopens
Worshippers have visited a New Zealand mosque as it reopened for the first time…
![President Donald Trump sparked confusion in Washington (Carolyn Kaster/AP) President Donald Trump sparked confusion in Washington (Carolyn Kaster/AP)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ipanews_e097903f-9840-4ed9-af64-275a0137dfba_1-1.jpg)
Confusion as Trump intervenes on North Korea sanctions with tweet
President Donald Trump tweeted on Friday that he…
![China’s President Xi Jinping. Photo: Reuters China’s President Xi Jinping. Photo: Reuters](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/2017-08-07_bus_33517970_I1-1.jpg)
Huge blast at chemicals factory kills 62 in China
An explosion at a pesticide plant in eastern China has killed 62 people, state media said…
![French President Emmanuel Macron. Photo: Getty Images French President Emmanuel Macron. Photo: Getty Images](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/AFP_1DR8H0.jpg)
Soldiers will not shoot 'yellow vest' protesters, insists Macron
Emmanuel Macron was yesterday forced to wade into an escalating row over claims that…
![US President Donald Trump. Photo: Evan Vucci/AP US President Donald Trump. Photo: Evan Vucci/AP](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/25trump.jpg)
President's about-turn leaves North Korean sanction policy in disarray
US President Donald Trump said yesterday he…
![Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/2018-03-15_bus_39269120_I1.jpg)
Election surge for populist party in wake of terror attack
The centre-right government in the Netherlands has lost its majority in the senate after voters…
![Long-awaited report: Special Counsel Robert Mueller Long-awaited report: Special Counsel Robert Mueller](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/MP-RUSSIA1820INT_ED6_S01Read-Only.jpg)
Mueller hands in report over Trump’s links with Russia
Special Counsel Robert Mueller yesterday handed in a long-awaited report on his…
![Mourning: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Photo: Reuters Mourning: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Photo: Reuters](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/2019-03-23_wor_48981826_I1.jpg)
'Unbreakable' nation unites by joining the Muslim call to prayer
New Zealanders observed the Muslim call to…
![Writing on Instagram afterwards, Mr Al Amood, who has 14,000 online subscribers, claimed he had tried to speak to officers to de-escalate tensions, but, he claimed, they Writing on Instagram afterwards, Mr Al Amood, who has 14,000 online subscribers, claimed he had tried to speak to officers to de-escalate tensions, but, he claimed, they](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/halfof.jpg)
Police break up mass 'social media brawl'
Police in Berlin had to break up a mass brawl of more than 400 people – after fans of…
![On the border: Members of the Druze community on the Israeli-controlled sector of the Golan Heights use loud-hailers to talk to fellow Druze in Syria. Photo: Getty Images On the border: Members of the Druze community on the Israeli-controlled sector of the Golan Heights use loud-hailers to talk to fellow Druze in Syria. Photo: Getty Images](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/AFP_1EX02ORead-Only.jpg)
Patrick Cockburn: 'By backing Israel's Golan claim, Trump rips up rules that keep a…
The Trump wrecking ball strikes again as he…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3277865-1553264896062163_10.jpg)
WATCH: Nigel Farage calls Brexit extension an 'international humiliation'
Nigel Farage described the decision by…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3277829-1553260806556536_10.jpg)
WATCH: Big Ben the famous clock face goes blue
The North Dial of Elizabeth Tower was unveiled on Thursday revealing the…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3277532-1553216654885388_10.jpg)
WATCH: Prime Minister will not revoke Article 50
The Prime Minister “will not countenance” revoking Article 50 despite a…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3277519-1553213055038663_10.jpg)
WATCH: EU agrees to delay Brexit if UK Parliament approve a deal
Press conference with European Council president Donald…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3277344-1553183760778560-1.jpg)
VIDEO: Teenager locked up for 27 years for raping and murdering Alesha MacPhail
The 16-year-old boy who abducted,…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3277262-1553175768804006-1.jpg)
WATCH: Theresa May arrives in Brussels to ask for Article 50 extension
Prime Minister Theresa May arrives in Brussels…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3277208-1553170513798661_10-1.jpg)
WATCH: Judge sentences Aaron Campbell to 27 years in prison for Alesha murder
16-year-old Aaron Campbell who abducted,…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3277198-1553169923214205-1.jpg)
VIDEO: Four mosques attacked overnight in Birmingham
An investigation involving counter-terrorism officers has been launched…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3277131-1553163392221200-1.jpg)
WATCH: 'I didn't get a thank you' for John McCain's funeral – Trump
Donald Trump has again hit out at the late John…
![](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/3276963-1553161922133478-1.jpg)
VIDEO: Brexit – What happens now after Article 50 extension request?
Theresa May has formally requested an…
![A man reacts as he speaks on a mobile phone near a mosque in central Christchurch, New Zealand, Friday, March 15, 2019. Multiple people were killed in mass shootings at two mosques full of people attending Friday prayers, as New Zealand police warned people to stay indoors as they tried to determine if more than one gunman was involved.(AP Photo/Mark Baker) A man reacts as he speaks on a mobile phone near a mosque in central Christchurch, New Zealand, Friday, March 15, 2019. Multiple people were killed in mass shootings at two mosques full of people attending Friday prayers, as New Zealand police warned people to stay indoors as they tried to determine if more than one gunman was involved.(AP Photo/Mark Baker)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/NZEALAND20M209-2.jpg)
Gallery: New Zealand in mourning as gunman opens fire at two mosques
![A general view shows the scene of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET 302 plane crash, near the town of Bishoftu, southeast of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri A general view shows the scene of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET 302 plane crash, near the town of Bishoftu, southeast of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/crash001-2.jpg)
In Pictures: Devastation as Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302 crashes, killing all onboard
![Sean Brown salvages items from the wreckage of his home following a string of tornadoes that resulted in several fatalities in Beauregard, Alabama, U.S., March 4, 2019. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage Sean Brown salvages items from the wreckage of his home following a string of tornadoes that resulted in several fatalities in Beauregard, Alabama, U.S., March 4, 2019. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/alabama001-2.jpg)
In Pictures: Aftermath of Alabama tornado that killed at least 23 people
![Composite photos of on 01/03/18 (top), during the Beast from the East, and the same view on 26/02/19, as Britain experienced record-breaking temperatures after Tuesday became the warmest winter day on record. Composite photos of on 01/03/18 (top), during the Beast from the East, and the same view on 26/02/19, as Britain experienced record-breaking temperatures after Tuesday became the warmest winter day on record.](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/WEATHER2020167-2.jpg)
In Pictures: Sunshine and snow – weather changes one year apart
Photographs taken on March 1, 2018 and of the same…
![U.S President Donald Trump arrives at Noi Bai Airport before a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019, in Hanoi. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci) U.S President Donald Trump arrives at Noi Bai Airport before a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019, in Hanoi. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/trumpvisit20004-2.jpg)
In Pictures: Trump arrives in Vietnam ahead of Kim Jong-Un meeting
![Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., acknowledges cheers as she takes the stage during an event to formally launch her presidential campaign, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., acknowledges cheers as she takes the stage during an event to formally launch her presidential campaign, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/warren001-2.jpg)
In Pictures: US Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren officially launches bid for 2020 presidency
![Firefighters leave the scene of a fire in Paris, Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) Firefighters leave the scene of a fire in Paris, Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/parisfire001-2.jpg)
In Pictures: Arson suspected after deadly Paris apartment fire
![Rams cheerleader Napoleon Jinnies (C) performs with other cheerleaders during Super Bowl LIII between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on February 3, 2019. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP)TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images Rams cheerleader Napoleon Jinnies (C) performs with other cheerleaders during Super Bowl LIII between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on February 3, 2019. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP)TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/jinnies001-2.jpg)
In Pictures: Male cheerleaders perform at Super Bowl for first time in NFL history
![An aerial view shows flood waters in the suburb of Hyde Park, Townsville, North Queensland, Australia, February 4, 2019. AAP Image/Dave Acree/via REUTERS An aerial view shows flood waters in the suburb of Hyde Park, Townsville, North Queensland, Australia, February 4, 2019. AAP Image/Dave Acree/via REUTERS](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/queensland001-2.jpg)
In Pictures: Worst floods in a century in Queensland, Australia to worsen this week
![Ice forms along the shore of Lake Michigan before sunrise, Thursday, Jan. 31, 2019, in Chicago. The painfully cold weather system that put much of the Midwest into a historic deep freeze was expected to ease Thursday, though temperatures still tumbled to record lows in some places. (AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato) Ice forms along the shore of Lake Michigan before sunrise, Thursday, Jan. 31, 2019, in Chicago. The painfully cold weather system that put much of the Midwest into a historic deep freeze was expected to ease Thursday, though temperatures still tumbled to record lows in some places. (AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato)](http://ajy.ac2.mywebsitetransfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/US20Weathe2012-2.jpg)