Over 50,000 Mozambicans displaced in southern Africa flooding

Heavy rains have inundated a swath of southern Africa, forcing more than 50,000 people to flee their homes in Mozambique alone, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.



The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) singled out the town of Xai-Xai, near the Limpopo River and the capital of Gaza province, as the heaviest hit in Mozambique.



"Authorities have also issued alerts for downtown Xai-Xai, including warnings of the risk of crocodiles appearing in flooded areas," OCHA said.



The office said many roads remain inaccessible. The UN and its partners are considering using sea routes between the country's capital, Maputo, and the small port of Inhambane, which is closer to most affected areas.



OCHA said the UN and its partners, working in support of the government, are scaling up life-saving assistance, while assessments continue in hard-to-reach areas. More support is arriving, including for search-and-rescue, coordination, information management and logistics.