Mozambique floods worsen

Cahora Bassa Dam cannot contain all the water

At least 60 people have died and 75,000 made homeless as flood waters continue to rise in the Zambezi Valley in Mozambique.

Rainwater from Zambia and Zimbabwe is continuing to pour into the Cahora Bassa Dam.

Zambia has had to open two of the six floodgates on the Kariba Dam because of continuing heavy pressure on their dam - and say they may have to open more.

Over the next few days, this additional water will feed into the Cahora Bassa Dam, putting pressure on the Mozambicans to further increase the outflow into the Zambezi.

Four of the eight floodgates at Cahorra Bassa are already open.

Evacuation problems

Reports vary as to how many people might be in danger downstream from these floods, with up to 400,000 possibly at risk.

Many people have no idea of the danger they could be in.

However, the flood waters are rising much more gradually than they did last year when 700 died in flooding and 500,000 were made homeless.

This is giving people the time to escape under their own steam.

But attempts to move people to higher ground are running into trouble as many refuse to go or simply run away.

The government admitted that it only succeeded in evacuating 15 people on Tuesday.

Mozambican officals are also blaming inadequate resources for preventing the evacuation of people.

The governor of Sofala Province, Felicio Pedro Zacarias, said the boats being used in the operation were far too small and larger boats were needed to handle more people in the swiftly flowing river.