Mozambique News Agency
AIM Reports
Maputo, 21 Feb (AIM) - Cyclone Favio, sweeping in from the Mozambique Channel, is likely to hit the coast of the southern Mozambican province of Inhambane on Wednesday night.
According to a release from the country's relief agency, the National Disasters Management Institute (INGC), at 08.00 on Wednesday morning the cyclone was about 300 kilometres from the Mozambican coast, moving towards Inhambane at a speed of 18 kilometres an hour.
The cyclone has intensified, and has been upgraded from category three to the considerably more destructive category four.
Although Inhambane is forecast to bear the brunt of the storm, the INGC warns that the entire coastline, from Chongoene in Gaza province to Buzi in Sofala, is likely to be affected by strong winds with gusts of up to 160 kilometres an hour. The area concerned is roughly between the Limpopo and Pungue rivers. Moderate rainfall, with heavy rain locally, is also predicted.
The INGC advises the authorities in Gaza, Inhambane and Sofala provinces to 'take the necessary preventive measures'.
This release also warns the public to stay clear of flood prone areas, to keep a store of food and water for emergencies, to ensure that all boats are securely moored, and to close the schools and factories that are in the path of the cyclone.
On its current path, the cyclone will not hit the Zambezi Valley, and so will not add to the misery of people already made homeless by severe flooding on the Zambezi.