Climate Changed
UN Says Damage From Southern African Cyclone May Top $1 Billion
- More than 700 people have died in the region after flooding
- Mozambique and Zimbabwe’s economies were already under strain
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A cyclone that tore across southern Africa this month may have destroyed more than $1 billion of infrastructure, the United Nations said, as the death toll from the storm climbed to more than 700.
After devastating Mozambique’s port city of Beira, Tropical Cyclone Idai damaged roads, bridges and dams as it moved toward eastern Zimbabwe. More than 100,000 houses were partially or completely destroyed, according to the UN. It also ruined more than 500,000 hectares of crops, just as farmers in the region were preparing to harvest their corn after a drought.