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Officials said more than 100 people have died after weeks of flooding triggered by heavy rain
Three of those who died were killed by crocodiles that are lurking in the floodwaters, authorities said
Authorities have since warned the public not to approach still waters due to crocodile risk
Dozens of people have died after significant flooding in Mozambique, including three who were killed by crocodiles lurking in the water.
Authorities announced on Jan. 16 that more than 100 people have died across Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe after weeks of flooding triggered by heavy rain, according to the Associated Press.
Thirteen of the deaths occurred in Mozambique, including three people who authorities said were killed by crocodiles, according to Reuters and the Associated Press.
One attack earlier this month reportedly left two dead and three others injured. More recently, local media reported that Henriques Bongece, Maputo’s province secretary, said one man was “swallowed” by a crocodile in the town of Moamba.
Orlando Chauke / AFP via Getty
A general view of building and an informal structure submerged in floodwater in Giyani on January 16, 2026.
Paola Emerson, head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Mozambique, said the animals “are in the Limpopo river” and “are able to get into populated areas that are now submerged under water and that is the concern.”
Meanwhile, Bongece has warned the public “not to approach still waters” due to crocodiles “drifting in these waters,” according to the AP.
More than 700,000 people have been impacted by the flooding, half of which are children, the AP reported.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said over 72,000 homes have been destroyed, according to Reuters.
IFRC Program and Operations Manager Rachel Fowler warned that “the situation could worsen” as more rain is expected in the coming days while “dams are already at full capacity, according to Al Jazeera.
Emidio JOZINE / AFP via Getty
This aerial view shows residents wading through floodwater to cross a road near Maputo on January 20, 2026.
Officials have said the flooding is the worst in the region since 2000, when an estimated 700 people died in Mozambique, according to Reuters. The death toll from the current flooding is expected to rise.
Among the missing is Andile Mngwevu, a councillor in the Ekurhuleni municipality in South Africa, according to the BBC.
Officials reportedly said Mngwevu went missing after he and four others were stuck in a car when it was caught in floodwaters in the Gaza province. Only one of the five people has been accounted for so far.
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It will cost an estimated $30 million to repair the damage caused by the floods, according to Al Jazeera.
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