By Moses Michael-Phiri
BLANTYRE, Malawi
At least five more people have been killed due to a wave of flooding that has hit the southern African country.
"We have a report that four people – a father, mother and two children – died when the house they were sleeping in fell on them," Zomba district commissioner Bennet Nkasala told The Anadolu Agency on Tuesday.
He said rain had been falling non-stop since last week, destroying many local homes, bridges and farms.
A fifth person died in Karonga in northern Malawi, bringing to 11 the total death toll since flash floods hit the country roughly one week ago.
Six other people were killed by the flooding on Saturday.
Ten other people, meanwhile, have been reported missing in Blantyre, Malawi's commercial capital.
Incessant rainfall has continued to wreak havoc across the country.
Thousands of homes have been destroyed and large swathes of crops washed away.
Malawi's Department of Disaster Management Affairs said the number of those who had been displaced as a result of the flooding had risen to some 45,000 people – or 7,500 households – in 14 districts.
So far, rescue efforts have been hampered by funding shortfalls, given that an initial budget of $200,000 has been exhausted.
Malawi's rainy season begins in October and ends in April.
Since the rains began last year, heavy downpours have been common in most parts of the country.
Elina Kululanga, director of metrological services and climate change management, told AA last Friday that forecasts had shown that the rain would continue for two or three more days, mostly in the country's northern and central regions.
