Maputo, 18 Jan (AIM) – Mozambican President Daniel Chapo has urged people in flood-stricken areas to prioritise saving human life rather than retrieving property from the advancing waters.
Speaking in the Chiaquelane accommodation centre in Chokwe district, in the southern province of Gaza, Chapo stressed that material goods can be recovered later, but it is urgent to save human lives right now.
“We have to tell our brothers who are still not leaving flood-prone areas for fear that they will lose their property, their livestock or their crops, that they only have one life, and if they lose it, there is no going back”, said Chapo. “Those who suffer afterwards are their families”.
Chapo also took the opportunity to condemn those who are taking advantage of the floods to loot shops and abandoned homes. It was reported that 26 shops in Chokwe were looted on Friday night.
“I want to condemn those who are stealing the property of others”, said the President. “This is not the time to break into the houses of those who have taken refuge in the accommodation centres, but who will want to return alive and find their possessions”.
In his visit to Gaza, Chapo overflew some of the worst affected areas in Massingir, Guija and Chokwe districts. In Chokwe, he spotted a dozen people, including children, stranded on top of a minibus while the flood waters swirled around them.
He immediately told the pilot of his helicopter to land the aircraft as close to the minibus as possible. He ordered the seats to be moved from the helicopter to make room for the trapped people who had been on the roof of the bus for two days. All the people from the roof of the bus were rescued and flown to safety at the Chiaquelane accommodation centre.
“We couldn’t ignore that situation”, Chapo said. “These were people who had been besieged for days, without food or shelter. It was our duty to save lives”.
(AIM)
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