Twelve more people have been found dead across Malawi after they were washed away by flood, a report said on Thursday.
Mulanje District Planning Officer, Grey Mkwanda disclosed this during inspection of the area.
No fewer than eight persons were found dead in the southern district of Mulanje, Blantyre, a district administration official has confirmed.
Also, one more person died when a house fell on him.
“It has been raining for the past week and violent floods from Mulanje Mountain engulfed villages below, sweeping away people, livestock, crops and houses.
“Unfortunately some of the did not survive,’’ Mkwanda said.
Mkwanda said hundreds of families have been rendered homeless following the flood.
“People have fled into schools and churches on the higher ground, others are in the open for there is not enough space,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, in Blantyre, three persons were killed in the high-density township of Chilobwe, when their houses were washed away by flood.
“A teacher and his son miserably died,’’ Member of Parliament for the area, Allan Ngumuya, said during a visit.
He added that one more child from another family also died.
According to police spokeswoman, Elizabeth Divala, police are also looking for two children who went missing following the flood in Chilobwe.
MP Ngumuya said the flood washed away whole houses, adding that in some cases you cannot believe there was a house here.
The Mulanje and Blantyre deaths put the total known figure of those who have died following the flood at 21.
In a related development, Vice President Saulos Chilima, government officials and journalists could not reach the flood-prone southern Lower Shire Valley to inspect the extent of the damage.
It was reported that the military helicopter in which they flew could not land at Chileka International Airport due to bad weather.
