MAPUTO, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Mozambican meteorological authorities warned Thursday in northern Nampula province that the tropical storm Gombe is likely to make landfall at the province's coastal district of Mossuril on Friday morning, the national news agency AIM reported.
The system is moving at a speed between 120 to 165 kilometers per hour and the impact could be much stronger than the tropical storm Ana that hit the region in January, according to Lelo Tayob, a meteorologist from the National Institute of Meteorology, who spoke at a provincial session of the Emergency Operational Committee held in Nampula.
"At this moment, the system has already turned into a tropical cyclone and is already very close to the waters off our coast, towards the province of Nampula, and according to the forecasts everything indicates that the district of Mossuril will be the entry point," the AIM report quoted Tayob as saying.
The executive authorities have so far announced the restriction of all activities along the coast and sensitized communities to take precautionary measures and leave risk areas.
The National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction has also warned Wednesday that 77 bridges, 2,058 schools and 192 health unities in the central and northern region of the country are at high risk of being affected by the cyclone.
18 boats, food and non-food items have reportedly been positioned in strategic locations to provide immediate assistance if necessary.
Domestic flights of the national airline LAM to central, northern regions have also been cancelled due to the storm. ■