January 2022 – Page 2

January 31, 2022

Military to Aid Outback Town Cut Off by Australian Floods

The Australian air force is preparing to deliver 20 tons of emergency supplies to remote communities cut off by flood waters. Traffic has been disrupted on the main highway and railway between Adelaide in South Australia and Darwin, the capital city of the Northern Territory.

Heavy rain and storms in recent days have damaged freight routes in South Australia.

A 14-day major emergency was declared Friday by state authorities. It gives the police special powers to ensure food reaches isolated communities.

South Australia has a population of 1.7 million who are already under a major emergency declaration for COVID-19. The state was also badly impacted by the Black Summer bushfires of 2019-20, although the floods have occurred away from the areas worst-hit by the fires.

The area is expected to receive yet more rain, with up to 200 millimeters forecast in the coming days.

A military plane is scheduled to land Monday in the outback settlement of Coober Pedy to deliver food and other essentials.

The town is 850 kilometers north of Adelaide on the Stuart Highway and is known as the “opal capital of the world” because of its mining resources. The impact on mining and farming might not be known for days.

Tim Jackson, the administrator of the Coober Pedy Council, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. that the arrival of supplies would ease community concerns.

“People are pretty relaxed generally speaking, I think, and particularly now that they know there is a significant food drop being made today. It is just a bit frustrating. It is just the unknown about when the highway is going to be opened again. (I) understand that it is the first time both the rail and road have been impacted simultaneously,” Jackson said.

Flooding in South Australia and the disruption to freight routes have led to shortages on supermarket shelves in the Northern Territory and Western Australia.

Higher-than-average rainfall this summer is associated with a La Niña weather system, which can also produce a higher-than-normal number of tropical cyclones.

The naturally occurring system develops when strong winds move the warm surface waters of the Pacific Ocean from South America towards Indonesia.

In Australia, the La Niña system increases the likelihood of cooler daytime temperatures, reducing the risk of bushfires and heatwaves.

Conservationists are warning that the impact of climate change will increase the incidence and intensity of “extreme rainfall events” in Australia. They have said that the risks of flooding are exacerbated when the atmosphere is “made warmer and wetter by climate change.”

Source: Voice of America

January 31, 2022

US FDA Gives Full Approval to Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration ((FDA)) Monday gave full approval to U.S. pharmaceutical company Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine, which will be marketed under the name Spikevax.

The vaccine has been widely distributed in the United States and around the world under the FDA’s emergency use authorization since December of 2020. It is the second COVID-19 vaccine the agency has fully approved, after Pfizer’s vaccine received the designation in August of 2021.

In a statement, acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock said full authorization of the vaccine is an important step in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. She said that while hundreds of millions of doses of the Moderna shot have been administered under the emergency use authorization, she understands “for some individuals, FDA approval of this vaccine may instill additional confidence in making the decision to get vaccinated.”

Woodcock said the public can be assured that the Moderna vaccine “meets the FDA’s high standards for safety, effectiveness and manufacturing quality required of any vaccine approved for use in the United States.”

The Moderna vaccine has been approved for use in more than 70 countries including Britain, Canada, Japan and those in the European Union.

Source: Voice of America

January 31, 2022

At least 32 killed after Tropical Cyclone Ana sweeps across Malawi

Malawi has recorded at least 32 deaths caused by the Tropical Cyclone Ana which tore across the country on Tuesday, the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) said in a statement Sunday.

“As of today, DoDMA has recorded 32 deaths, 147 injuries and 20 missing persons, with 19 in Chikwawa and one in Mwanza,” it said, adding that “a total of 187,930 households, approximately 845,685 people, have been affected.”

Chikwawa and Nsanje are the country’s worst-hit districts, accounting for most of the deaths and damage to houses, property, livestock and crops caused by floods and strong winds induced by Ana. The country’s power supply has also been disrupted.

Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera on Wednesday declared a state of disaster in 15 districts, and appealed for humanitarian assistance from the international community.

Following the appeal, several organizations including Concern Worldwide, Malawi Red Cross Society, Partners in Health, Feed the Children, and Gift of the Givers have provided relief assistance for the country, according to DoDMA’s Sunday update.

Meanwhile, DoDMA has dispatched over 1,000 metric tons of maize, maize flour, beans and salt to support the affected people living in temporary camps. Search and resue operations are also underway.

Meanwhile, some other southern African countries have also been hit by the cyclone, with landfall in Angoche, Mozambique, and other destructions in Madagascar and Zimbabwe, the South African Weather Service said in a press release.

Nathan Nkomo, director of Zimbabwe’s department of civil protection, told the Sunday Mail newspaper that the cyclone had left a trail of destruction in 13 districts of four provinces but caused no fatalities.

“The latest update shows that Ana directly affected all Mashonaland provinces and Manicaland … There are over 282 houses and buildings that were damaged,” he was quoted as saying.

Source: Nam News Network

January 31, 2022

Concern supports those left homeless by storm in Malawi

Concern Worldwide has launched an emergency response to help over 400,000 people whose homes have been destroyed or damaged by Tropical Storm Ana which swept through the south of the country this week.

The high winds and widespread flooding resulted in at least 20 deaths and extensive infrastructural damage. The scale of the storm’s impact is expected to rise in the coming days as relief workers reach villages currently cut off by floodwaters and collapsed roads and bridges.

“The high winds ripped roofs off homes and blew down walls,” Concern’s Country Director Yousaf Jogezai said. “In other cases structures collapsed as a result of the heavy rainfall.”

An estimated 70,000 people are currently sheltering in churches and schools. A search and rescue operation is underway for people reported to be cut off by floodwaters, with the Malawi defence forces providing boats and aircraft.

Concern’s team is on the ground, distributing plastic sheeting, mosquito nets, blankets, soap and essential household items.

“Many people have lost everything,” Mr Jogezai said. Concern and other humanitarian agencies are also continuing to work with the government to assess the full scale of the damage.

Concerns For Harvest

More rain is forecast in the coming days, swelling rivers which drain into already flooded areas.

Mr Jogezai noted that the heavy rains would also damage the maize harvest – a key element of the staple diet in Malawi – and result in food insecurity in the coming months.

The World Bank lists Malawi amongst the top 10 nations to be worst affected by climate change and is experiencing extreme weather. The country was already facing difficulties due to drought conditions in recent months. Combined, these double disasters will have a significant impact on food security in 2022 and beyond, Mr Jogezai said.

Source: Concern Worldwide

January 31, 2022

Southeastern Africa Cleans Up From Tropical Storm Ana

Rescue efforts continued across southeastern Africa Monday for thousands of people cut off by flooding from last week’s Tropical Storm Ana. The storm killed at least 90 people across Madagascar, Mozambique and Malawi. Experts say a fresh cyclone forming near the island nation of Mauritius could hamper rescue efforts and worsen damage in the region.

The storm damaged public infrastructures, including health care facilities and roads, and interrupted medical services to people affected by the storm.

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the storm killed 20 people in Mozambique and displaced 121,000 others. In Madagascar, according to the Africa CDC, 48 people were killed and 148,000 others left homeless.

In Malawi, the Department of Disaster Management Affairs says Tropical Storm Ana killed 32 people and displaced 188,000 from their homes across 17 districts.

“For Chikwawa alone, [a] total of 44 camps have been set to accommodate the displaced. But the figures might rise, as the council is still conducting some assessment, and the general public will be updated on any development,” said Chipiliro Khamula, the department’s spokesperson.

On Thursday, Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera declared a national disaster in areas hard-hit by Tropical Storm Ana and called for urgent assistance for the flood victims.

In a statement Sunday, the Department of Disaster Management said relief assistance is reaching some areas, although efforts to access others are hampered by impassable roads.

The countries affected by Tropical Storm Ana are concerned by reports of a fresh tropical cyclone, known as Batsirai, is forming near the island nation of Mauritius.

However, weather experts in the region have downplayed those fears.

Yobu Kachiwanda, the spokesperson for Malawi’s’ Department of Meteorological Services, said Tropical Cyclone Batsirai is currently still in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar.

“And at this stage, the track is not very certain. So, more of its possible track will be observed in the next three days, but otherwise for now, there is no threat to Malawi weather. But if there [will] be any cause of threat to Malawi weather, Malawians will be informed accordingly,” Kachiwanda said.

If it does approach Malawi, he advised people in flood-prone areas to take heed of any warnings from weather experts and officials.

“If they are saying move to higher ground, they should act immediately, because these threats are there, and climate change is with us,” Kachiwanda said.

President Chakwera offered similar advice Monday when he visited flood victims in the Chikwawa and Nsanje districts in southern Malawi.

Source: Voice of America

January 30, 2022

Teenage COVID-19 Vaccination Process Meets Resistance in Malawi

Malawi’s government says is registering low numbers of teenagers taking the COVID-19 vaccine. This is largely because parents and guardians are reluctant to give consent to have their children get the shot.

Malawi started administering the Pfizer vaccine to children ages 12 to 17 on January 1st to help contain the spread of the coronavirus among children.

Vaccination of teens requires health care providers to seek consent from parents.

Statistics show that fewer than 4,000 children were vaccinated as of Saturday, a figure health authorities said was not impressive.

The low response is blamed on parents refusing to give consent to health workers.

Mailesi Mhango is the district coordinator for the Expanded Program on Immunization in the Ministry of Health.

She says reluctance is more prevalent for children who go to public or government schools, where none of the youngsters has so far been vaccinated.

“For the privately owned schools, the response is better compared to government-run schools. I don’t know why. But for private schools, at least there is a positive response; many schools are booking us. ‘Can you come and vaccinate our learners?’ So, we are going to such schools and vaccinating them,” she said.

Willy Malimba, the president of the Teachers’ Union of Malawi, says it is a non-starter to expect teenage students to get the COVID-19 shot in schools.

“This time around, even when the government can decide to go to school to vaccinate learners, I am sure that school can be immediately closed because the learners, even the teachers will run away, unless they are fully sensitized. Otherwise, they are taking this issue as a negative issue because of the coming of this vaccine; it came with negatives,” he said.

Malimba recounts incidents where students have run away from suspected providers of the vaccine.

“Even myself I have been experiencing some situations whereby I was going to certain schools and when learners saw my car, they ran away and I was told from the head teachers that the learners are running away because they think that we are coming with the vaccine,” he said.

Government statistics show that only about 7.3 % of about 20 million people in Malawi are fully vaccinated, far from the required 60% to reach herd immunity.

The low uptake is largely attributed to myths that link COVID-19 vaccine to infertility and allegations that the vaccine is the government’s ploy to reduce the population.

In a statement Saturday, the co-chairperson for the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Dr. Wilfred Chalamira Nkhoma, urged all parents and guardians to get their children aged 12 years and above inoculated.

He said doing so will protect these children from severe disease and hospitalization, even if they do become infected with the virus that causes COVID-19.

Some parents say they are not ready for that at the moment.

Lindiwe Mwale, a mother of three children, two of them teenagers, is among the parents concerned.

She spoke via a messaging application from her home in Chiwembe Township in Blantyre.

“I am a parent who has vaccinated them before [with] other vaccines which are there, but for this one [COVID-19 vaccine] I really would not want to risk them by getting them vaccinated by a vaccine which is currently on trial. After all, the COVID-19 is not greatly affecting people of that age; many of them make it,” she said.

Mwale, who is vaccinated, also says with a drop in cases in Malawi, from about 700 daily cases previously to now 80 cases as of Saturday, she feels the pandemic poses no threat that would warrant vaccination of her children.

Health authorities say they are now planning to meet the parents and teachers and educate them on the importance of having children vaccinated against COVID-19.

Source: Voice of America