Malawi floods kill at least 48, damage crops.

Malawi - Malawi President Peter Mutharika has declared
half the southern African country a disaster zone after
torrential rains over the past few days killed at least 48
people and left around 70 000 homeless.
The heavy rains have also damaged crops in the country,
which last year harvested a bumper 3.9 million tonnes of
the staple maize crop, a surplus of almost a million
tonnes.
Malawi's Department of Climate Change and
Meteorological Services has warned of heavy rainfall and
flash floods in the country for the next two to three
weeks.
"So far, it is estimated that 69 995 people have been
displaced by the floods and 48 people have lost their
lives. The floods have also damaged a lot of hectares of
crops, washed away livestock and damaged infrastructure
such as roads and bridges,"
Mutharika said in a statement late on Tuesday.
He also said many people remained stranded and would
need to be rescued from low-lying areas prone to
flooding.
"I declare all the 15 districts that have been affected by
floods Disaster Areas... I appeal for humanitarian
assistance, from the international donor community," he
said.
The crop outlook in the country, where much agriculture
is still done by subsistence farmers, has deteriorated after
a late start to rains in the summer planting season which
usually gets underway in October or November.
"Delayed and overall below-average cumulative rains
since the start of the rainy season in October last year
have adversely affected the 2015 cereal crops, but
prolonged heavy rains may worsen the situation," said
Jeffrey Luhanga, Principal Secretary in the Ministry of
Agriculture.
Wet weather has also wreaked damage in neighbouring
Mozambique, which has been hit periodically by
catastrophic floods in the past.
Bridges have collapsed in the country and the newly
elected government there has declared a "red alert" for
the central and northern parts of the country and was
sending rescue boats and aid to stricken areas.
- Reuters