Belgium sends 10 tonnes of emergency aid to Madagascar after cyclones

Belgium is sending around 10 tonnes of emergency supplies to Madagascar this week after two devastating cyclones hit the island within days.

Belgium is sending around 10 tonnes of emergency supplies to Madagascar this week after two devastating cyclones hit the island within days.

The aid, delivered through the Belgian First Aid and Support Team (B-FAST), follows an official request for help from the Malagasy authorities. The country was struck by Cyclone Fytia on 30 January and again by Cyclone Gezani on 10 February.

Fytia first battered the north-west coast with strong winds and heavy rain, forcing thousands from their homes. Less than a fortnight later, Gezani made landfall near Toamasina, the country’s second-largest city, before moving over areas already flooded by the earlier storm.

Satellite images taken by NASA’s Aqua satellite showed Gezani rapidly strengthening before landfall. Winds reached 200 kilometres per hour, the strength of a Category 3 hurricane. Meteorologists said warm sea temperatures and low wind shear helped the storm intensify. Torrential rain led to severe flooding, power cuts and widespread damage.

More than 257,000 people have been affected nationwide. Tens of thousands of homes and dozens of classrooms have been destroyed. Early assessments link the storm to dozens of deaths and hundreds of injuries.

”The destruction in Toamasina is overwhelming”

Speaking from the capital Antananarivo, Tania Goossens, Country Director for the World Food Programme, said around 400,000 people now face urgent humanitarian needs. She described the destruction in Toamasina as “overwhelming”, with much of the city damaged, little electricity and no clean water.

The UN agency warned that food, water and sanitation are major concerns, and that many families have lost everything. Aid groups are distributing remaining food stocks, but say more international support is urgently needed as the cyclone season has only just begun.

Belgium responded through the European Civil Protection Mechanism. The shipment, totalling 82 cubic metres, includes mattresses, blankets and camp beds.

In a statement on Thursday, Belgium’s Foreign Affairs ministry said the support aims to meet basic needs and show solidarity with the people of Madagascar.

^{Toamasina after cyclone Gezani © RIJASOLO / AFP}