Cyclone Freddy teaches deadly lessons on storm warnings, city sprawl

FILE PHOTO: Locals in the Chiradzulu district look at the damage on a road after mudslides and rockfalls in the area caused by the aftermath of Cyclone Freddy in Blantyre, Malawi, March 15, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander

BLANTYRE/MAPUTO (Reuters) - Days before Cyclone Freddy struck Mozambique on March 11 for the second time, cars with loudhailers moved through the streets of the port town of Quelimane warning residents to move to shelters on higher ground with stocks of food and water.

Most people heeded the warnings, knowing from bitter experience the damage such storms could inflict: 600 people had died in Cyclone Idai in 2019.