8 000ha field crops destroyed, goats, chickens swept away in recent floods in Zambia

The recent floods recorded in southern Africa destroyed 8 000 hectares of crop fields after they were submerged in water while chickens and goats were swept away.

This is part of the assessment of a recent report done by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) released this week.

“The report also indicated that 8. 000 hectares of field crops were submerged in water, as well as houses and sanitation facilities. In addition, livestock such as chickens and goats were swept away. Initially, 500 HH (households) were displaced, then following the tropical cyclone ANA the number increased to 600 HH in Namwala district,” the report noted.

It said most parts of Zambia started receiving heavy rains in January 2022, and Kalomo, Namwala and Choma districts of the Southern Province experienced flash floods.

“Furthermore, the region continued to receive high rainfall due to tropical storms (Ana and Batsirai). According to the needs assessment report issued by the Zambian government through Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) (17 January 2022) followed by another assessment conducted by Zambia Red Cross both reports indicated that Namwala district recorded the highest number of households affected with 3,219.”

The IFRC said a total of four communities in Namwala were affected: Nakamboma, Mbeza, Chitongo and Mandondo.

“After the onset of the disaster, one camp namely Chilumono in Mandondo ward could only be accessed by air or oxcarts, and the remaining three wards could be accessed by road transport. ZRCS and DMMU collaborated with Zambia Air Force (ZAF) to reach out to Chilumino ward that could only be accessed by air or oxcart to conduct assessments and provide initial response. Some parts of the country continued to experience rains however, the rains did not cause any floods though contributed to waterlogged crop fields resulting in crop failure.”

The IFRC added: “At the onset of the disaster, it was reported that 8 000 ha of field crops have been submerged by water, three months after additional rains were received due to tropical cyclone Ana and Batsirai contributed towards already waterlogged crop fields.

“Additionally in areas that were not adversely affected by the flash floods, crops were negatively affected by late onset of rains, dry spells, and army worms. This has further worsened the food insecurity situation in the district. This resulted in crop failure and the flood victims will not have any crop to harvest to meet their food needs and or have any excess crop to sell as a means of income.”