A Perfect Storm
Mozambique - March 2019. A powerful cyclone forms in the Indian Ocean, rapidly growing into a category 4 storm. Cyclone Idai smashes into the coastal city of Beira, home to half a million people, bringing winds over 100-miles-an-hour and a 15-foot storm surge.
Aid workers and government officials are standing by to rush in and assess the damage as the storm moves in land. Initially it appears to be just material damage, but soon a very different picture emerges. Flooding of biblical proportions has inundated entire villages and hundreds have lost their lives in a vast inland ocean: a 1-in-200-year disaster.
A year after the cyclone, more flooding hits again: a massive setback for the recovery efforts. Funding for aid work is overstretched. Yet the people of Mozambique are determined to mitigate the effects of future storms and flooding. Local communities and government ministers work to restore mangrove forests and expand wilderness areas so next time, when disaster strikes, they’ll be better prepared.