At Least 15 People Died Due to Flooding in Mozambique's North Provinces - UN

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - At least 15 people have died in Mozambique's northern provinces due to heavy flooding in the area, the UN Resident Coordinator for Mozambique international organisation reported on Wednesday.

"At least 15 deaths reported and 103,169 people were affected by the floods in Zambezia, Tete and Niassa provinces", the report said.

According to the statement, more than 17,000 people were displaced from these areas and sheltered in 15 transit centres.

The Mozambique national water resources authorities also cautioned that another 160,000 people would be at risk in the coming days due to the intense tropical cyclone Idai, which is expected to hit the central provinces of the country on Friday.

READ MORE: US Bus Driver Tries to Cross Flood, Is Swept Away With Child On Board (VIDEO)

The UN Office of the Resident Coordinator in Mozambique first reported of heavy rains and flooding on Saturday, saying that some districts had recorded 140-180 millimetres (5-7 inches) of rain in 24 hours. The Mozambique government convened a Coordinating Council of Disaster Management, the highest political level of emergency coordination in the country, on Monday to analyze the impact of the flooding and discuss solutions for various emergency scenarios caused by the flooding.

Mozambique has a high incidence of flooding, which the country's National Institute of Meteorology attributes to two factors: tropical cyclones coming from the Indian Ocean to the east of the country and the fact that Mozambique stands downstream to nine major international river systems in Africa that drain through the country on their way to the aforementioned ocean.

Floods occur every two to three years, according to the institute, and in 2000 the country was hit simultaneously by two cyclones, killing at least 700 people and displacing at least 650,000.