At least 34 people have died following “one of the strongest cyclones ever recorded” in northern Mozambique, the country’s National Institute of Risk and Disaster Management (INGD) said.
Cyclone Chido hit Mozambique on Sunday, after wreaking havoc in the Indian Ocean region of Mayotte.
Hundreds are feared dead in Mayotte – the French overseas territory – and several people – including more than 200 Red Cross volunteers – are thought to be missing.
INGD has called the situation in Mozambique “heartbreaking” and warned that the death toll could rise.
More than 34,000 families in Mozambique have lost their homes due to Chido, which brought winds of 260km/h (160mph).
Schools, health centers and fishing boats were also destroyed.
Chido has hit the northern provinces that are always hit by typhoons. These are also plagued by the attacks of the Islamic forces.
The typhoon made landfall in Cabo Delgado before moving to the country of Niassa and Nampula, where a three-year-old girl was among the dead.
Most of those killed by Chido were hit by known objects, such as brick walls, said INGD spokesperson Paulo Tomas.
Electricity and communications have also been affected – the state electricity company Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM) has announced that around 200,000 customers are without power.
In Mayotte, widespread damage to infrastructure – with downed power lines and impassable roads – is severely hampering emergency operations.
Chido was the strongest typhoon to hit the area in more than 90 years.
The official death toll on the islands has reached 21, but hundreds are thought to have died.
“We are talking about the entire area, if not the entire island, which has been destroyed and eroded. The most frightening thing is the number of people who are still missing,” said Tommaso Della Longa, spokesman for the International Federation of Red Cross. the BBC.
He added that more than 200 Red Cross volunteers were among those feared missing.
French authorities have imposed a curfew in Mayotte to prevent looting.
Just last year, Mozambique was left reeling from Cyclone Freddy, one of the longest-lived cyclones ever recorded in the Southern Hemisphere, if not the world.
More than 180 people have been killed in the country, the World Meteorological Organization said.
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