Zimbabwe’s Meteorological Services Department (MSD) has urged the citizenry to be alert as Cyclone Chalane has made landfall in Madagascar and is expected to reach the Eastern parts of Zimbabwe in 24 hours. Below is the MSD update on cyclone Chalane.

WHAT?: OVERLAND DEPRESSION CHALANE

WHERE?: OVER MADAGASCAR

WHEN?: SUNDAY, 27 DECEMBER 2020 WATCH OUT FOR (in the next 24hours)!:

• Moving into the Mozambique Channel
• Rejuvenates and strengthens once more
• Rain-bands (cloud bands) extending at least 500km from centre of the system.

WHAT TO DO: Follow updates from the Meteorological Services Department (MSD) on the following platforms:

Meteorological Services Department of Zimbabwe

@MSDZIM

+263 778 125 911 ZBC News Updates on Weather

HOW?: Tropical Depression Chalane (previously a tropical storm) made landfall over Madagascar today, Sunday 27 December; but the effects of this systems were felt as early as Friday 25 December 2020 over the island, with massive flooding and reports of at least 26 people feared dead as 18 were swept away trying to cross a flooded river.

While interactions with land will depreciate the effects of this system, it is set to emerge over water in the Mozambique Channel where a generally westward direction, towards the coast of Mozambique, is highly probable due to the steering winds. Within the channel, it should re-intensify to peak spinning winds of 75km/hour (which is less than half the wind spin-speed of TC Idai @ 175km/hr) before it makes final landfall near Beira, Mozambique on Wednesday 30 December at 2200hr, where interaction with the rugged terrain will steadily weaken the system and lead to dissipation. Due to the nature of cloud bands, the effects may be felt as early as late Tuesday night, 29 December, with rainfall amounts of +100 mm/24hr (less than half of Tropical Cyclone Idai which ranged above 200 mm/24hr over Chimanimani and surrounding areas). The next update will be on Monday 28 December by 1200hrs.