Malawi calls for help following recent earthquake
22/12/2009
Malawi has requested international help after an earthquake hit the Karonga district on Sunday, it has been reported.
The quake, which damaged thousands of homes and killed at least three people, measured six on the Richter scale, informs the Associated Press.
Local official Gasten Macheka stated that, although the Red Cross has provided tents for temporary accommodation, more assistance is still needed to ensure the health and wellbeing of those whose homes have been destroyed.
"We need at least 48,000 tents to cater for the 270,000 people in the district," the news agency quotes him as saying.
A further threat to their health is the broken sewers that are currently gushing water in the region, Mr Macheka explained.
This news comes after it was revealed last month that Malawi achieved self-sufficiency in 2009, producing enough maize to sustain its people and even had a surplus, which it exported to other countries.
Written by Simon Bassett
