Tropical storm Dineo has killed seven people in Mozambique since it hit the eastern coast on Wednesday, the government's disaster centre said Thursday.

The storm has brought heavy rain and winds of up to 160 kilometers per hour (100 miles per hour), raising the risk of flooding and crop damage in the impoverished southern African country.

Mozambique's emergency operational centre said in a statement about 130,000 people living in the Inhambane province, 500km north of the capital Maputo, had been affected by the storm. About 20,000 homes were destroyed by heavy rains and fierce winds.

One of the world's poorest countries and also in the throes of a financial crisis, Mozambique is prone to flooding. It is especially vulnerable after a major drought last year as soils degraded or hardened by dry spells do not easily absorb water.

"The system will pose a great risk for the next 36 to 48 hours, particularly in terms of further exceptionally heavy rainfall and resultant flooding," the South African Weather Service said in a statement.

The Mozambican government said the situation was less severe in Gaza, which has the popular resort town of Xai-Xai as its capital and is near the border with South Africa.

Government said, however, that it feared flooding in the area due to the torrential downpour.

Experts said the storm should weaken as it moves over land, but that it could still bring heavy rainfall.

Damage could be inflicted on Mozambique's multi-million dollar macadamia nut industry. Subsistence maize farmers recovering from last year's El Nino-triggered drought are also at risk.

Floods in 2000 and 2001 killed hundreds of people in Mozambique and two cyclones in January 2012 killed 26 and displaced more than 125,000, according to official data.</s>JOHANNESBURG (AP) - Officials in Mozambique say seven people died and thousands of homes were destroyed in a tropical cyclone.

Parts of South Africa and Zimbabwe are anticipating high winds and heavy rain on Friday after cyclone Dineo hit southern Mozambique late Wednesday and swept inland. It was later downgraded to a tropical storm.

Emergency officials in Mozambique are reporting downed power lines and blocked roads in Inhambane, the province that suffered the worst impact. They say food and tents are being provided to families in need.</s>Seven people have died in Mozambique after a tropical cyclone swept inland leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

According to officials the Cyclone Dineo made landfall on the country's southern coast late on Wednesday leaving thousands of homes destroyed, power lines downed and roads blocked.

In Inhambane - the worst hit province - emergency officials are reportedly providing food and tents to families in need after their homes were destroyed.

Humanitarian aid networks, including the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said they have been providing assistance in the aftermath of the cyclone.</s>JOHANNESBURG - Officials in Mozambique say seven people died and thousands of homes were destroyed in a tropical cyclone.

 

 Parts of South Africa and Zimbabwe are anticipating high winds and heavy rain on Friday after cyclone Dineo hit southern Mozambique late Wednesday and swept inland. It was later downgraded to a tropical storm.

 

 Emergency officials in Mozambique are reporting downed power lines and blocked roads in Inhambane, the province that suffered the worst impact. They say food and tents are being provided to families in need.

Follow the Channel 3 Weather Team on Twitter @wkycweather and on Facebook

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>Seven people have died in Mozambique after a tropical cyclone swept inland leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

According to officials the Cyclone Dineo made landfall on the country's southern coast late on Wednesday leaving thousands of homes destroyed, power lines downed and roads blocked.

In Inhambane - the worst hit province - emergency officials are reportedly providing food and tents to families in need after their homes were destroyed.

Humanitarian aid networks, including the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said they have been providing assistance in the aftermath of the cyclone.

The cyclone has since been downgraded to a tropical storm but the national weather service has issued warnings for continuing damaging winds and flooding.</s>At least four people, including one child, have been killed in Mozambique by a tropical cyclone known as Dineo. Local media said the child, whose age was not disclosed, was killed after being crushed by a tree that had fallen over.

The incident occurred in Massinga, in the province of Inhambane, southern Mozambique, on Wednesday (15 February) night. The town was hit by winds in excess of 100 kmh (62mph) and heavy rains, according to South African Weather Service (SAWS).

"Strong winds exceeding 100km/h as well as torrential rainfall and very rough seas were most likely the main weather-related impacts," SAWS chief forecaster Kevin Rae said.

Dineo has now been downgraded from tropical cyclone to a tropical depression, with strong winds dying down. The tropical depression is being labelled "ex-Dineo".

In South Africa, a search and rescue unit was deployed in the northern part of the KwaZulu-Natal province – near the border with Mozambique – as a precautionary measure, The Times Lives website reported.

KwaZulu-Natal alongside two other South Africa provinces – Mpumalanga and Limpopo – and Zimbabwe are expected to be hit by rains and winds on 16 February.</s>MAPUTO: Cyclone Dineo killed seven people, injured 55 and affected hundreds of thousands across southern Mozambique, the country's natural disasters agency said on Friday (Feb 17).

More than 20,000 homes were destroyed by "winds and very strong rain", the National Institute of Disaster Management said, adding that the search for survivors is ongoing.

The storm has affected more than 650,000 people in the southeastern African country. Dineo's impact was greatest in Inhambane, an area popular with tourists on Mozambique's south east coast.

The city was struck by winds of more than 100 kilometres per hour and battered by torrential rain and rough seas. Nearly 1,000 classrooms and 70 health centres were destroyed.

Mozambique, one of the world's poorest countries, is often battered by deadly flooding and storms.

In 2000, floods claimed at least 800 lives, and more than 100 were killed in 2015.

Scores have already died in the current rainy season, which began in October.

Dineo was downgraded to a tropical depression on Thursday and renamed "ex-Dineo".

The South Africa Weather Service warned that the storm still posed a threat of heavy rainfall and flooding as it headed inland into South Africa, Zimbabwe and Botswana on Friday.

Kruger National Park, the country's premier safari destination, closed its gravel roads and several camps because of the storm. No major damage was reported.</s>Read more: The New Zealand Herald

Parts of South Africa and Zimbabwe are anticipating high winds and heavy rain on Friday after cyclone Dineo hit southern Mozambique late Wednesday and swept inland. It was later downgraded to a tropical storm.

Start the conversation, or Read more at The New Zealand Herald.</s>MAPUTO, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Tropical storm Dineo has killed seven people in Mozambique since it hit the eastern coast on Wednesday, the government disaster centre said on Thursday.

Mozambique's emergency operational centre said in a statement about 130,000 people living in the Inhambane province, 500 km north of the capital Maputo, had been affected by the storm. About 20,000 homes were destroyed by heavy rains and fierce winds.

The government said the situation was less severe in Gaza, which borders South Africa, but that there were fears of flooding in the area. (Reporting by Manuel Mucari; Editng by Angus MacSwan; Writing by Mfuneko Toyana)</s>Tropical Storm Dineo (TC 05S), which formed in the Mozambique Channel between southeast Africa and Madagascar earlier this week, was upgraded to Tropical Cyclone status just before it made landfall near Inhambane in southern Mozambique on Wednesday evening 15 February 2017.The UN in Mozambique reported that hundreds of thousands could be affected. In a report from earlier today the UN Resident Coordinator for Mozambique said "Although it is too premature to indicate the population to be affected, the estimations done by provincial authorities in Inhambane indicates thatThese figure is based on the total population living in the risk area and will be updated in the next days."National Institute of meteorology (INAM) forecast further strong winds and heavy rains possibly until 18 February 2017 in areas of Gaza province (Mandlakazi, Xai-Xai, Chibuto, Guija, Massingir, Mabalane) and several districts in Inhambane (Morrumbene, Jangamo, Inharime, Panda, Homoine, Vilankulos, Maxixe, Massinga, Zavala, and Inhambane city).For more details on potentially affected populations, see the report from UNITAR-UNOSAT here (pdf).According to SABC News reporter Mweli Masilela , Mozambique's Director of National Disasters Joao Machatine, reported on Thursday morning thatRSMC La Reunion forecast a storm surge of 2 to 3 metres (6 to 9 ft) in Inhambane Bay, co-inciding with high tide.Dineo has dissipated slightly as it moves westwards and is now classified as an overland depression. Gale force winds and heavy rains can still be expected into the northeastern parts of South Africa and southern Zimbabwe through Thursday and Friday. Flood warnings are in place and Mozambican, South African and Zimbabwean disaster management services are on high alert.Jan Vermeleun of the South African Weather Service said , "Dineo has now been downgraded to a depression. It still has winds of 50-60 kilometers per hour. It is expected to move towards the Punda Maria area of the Kruger National Park later today, still giving heavy rainfalls of 200mm per day in places."The storm is expected to move towards the eastern parts of Botswana by Friday and heavy rainfall of more than 100mm is expected in that area and over northern Limpopo province of South Africa.
Cyclone Dineo kills seven and destroys twenty-thousand homes in Mozambique.