Malawi VP Kachali ‘shaken’ over Karonga disaster

Vice President Khumbo Kachali on Saturday said he was shaken and saddened with the scale of disaster that has struck Kaporo area in Karonga appealing for more well wishers to quickly join in assisting the affected people.

Kachali, who is Minister responsible for disaster, spoke after visiting Mwenitete Village, Pusi Trading Centre and Kaporo Trading Centres in Traditional Authorities Kyungu and Kilipula where 4075 families have been affected by flash floods that occurred on Tuesday 26 March 2013.

“Karonga has become a disaster area, every other year for the last five years there has been a disaster one after another, we need to find a solution. The floods this year are devastating, I have never seen anything like this,” Kachali told Police officers whose houses were submerged to a window level and they are nov living in Police cells.

Kachali told a gathering at Kibwe primary school later that the recovery efforts requires multisectoral approach including the private sector in Karonga, saying in other areas such as
Chikwawa companies such as Illovo have helped victims before Government intervention.

The vice president console an elderly victim

“Eland Coal Mine should be commended for helping the needy. I ask the same spirit should be in the private sector and non governmental organizations operating in Karonga to come to assist the people,” said the Vice President.

The waters so far has swept maize and rice fields, destroyed household properties including killing six cows, hundreds of chickens and causing many houses to collapse and completely damaged Mzinga Community School which had just been rehabilitated.

Kachalis press officer Kodwani Munthali told journalists that the Vice President initial programme to visit Mzinga school had been cancelled as rains were continuing and had destroyed all access roads to the area.

The Vice President pledged that Government will consider providing early maturity crops to the affected people to reduce the expected food shortages in the area.

Paramount Chief Kyungu and MP for Karonga North Vincent Ghambi asked the beneficiaries of various support that they were receiving not to sale them as they were short term solutions to their immediate challenge.

Apart from the damages, only one woman was severely injured and is admitted at Karonga District Hospital.