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Mozambique Flooding: Thousands Stranded, More Water Expected

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LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Hail and high water have come to Mozambique. That nation is being inundated right now by contaminated floodwaters that have stranded untold thousands of its residents, some who are perishing right now in those waters.

Let's get the very latest now. CNN's Cynde Strande joins us now by telephone. She is in the town of Shaloquani (ph) in Mozambique.

And, Cynde, as I understand it, you've just come back from a rescue mission? Well, what happened?

CYNDE STRAND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Most of this town is under water, and the areas around it are under water. And people are up in trees. Aid organization, World Relief, managed to get three rubber boats out here this morning. And I've been here out on one of those boats. It took us two and a half hours to find 13 people. It is a really slow process. The current is very strong. And, for a lot of the people still trapped out there, time's really running out. They've been out for four days, most of them without any food.

HARRIS: What is, Cynde -- what is the latest now on the situation with the helicopters? As of yesterday, I believe, there were only seven there that which -- they're covering the entire countryside. Any change in that?

STRAND: Well, more helicopters have been pledged. There's a few more on the way from South Africa. The water is actually starting to go down, which is good news and will make the rescue operation a little bit easier. But the problem is: More water's expected from South Africa in Botswana, so we could see a repeat of the situation we've had over the last few days.

HARRIS: Cynde, just by judging by the pictures that you've been able to see firsthand in your flying around in these helicopters, is there any way to tell, right now, how many people are stranded right now by these waters?

STRAND: You know, there is really no way to tell. You know, we've been mostly in the Gaza provinces. There's another area along the Sari River that's probably been harder hit. And, you know, sometimes you can't even see the people in the trees; it's really difficult to find the people sometimes. And there certainly is no way to know how many people might have been swept away when those waters hit in this area again on late Saturday night. HARRIS: How about the food situation? What are these people eating?

STRAND: Well, right now, I'm just watching people eating corn. That's pretty much all they have. There has been -- they have been fortunate enough to they have a food dropoff here in this village. But they haven't got the food moving out to the people yet.

Food is going to be a big problem. It's already a problem. Most people come up and tell us: We are hungry, we are hungry, we need something to eat.

HARRIS: What about the nations that are neighboring Mozambique? Is there anything else they can do? Are they sending any more aid, any more food, any more troops, any more helicopters?

STRAND: Well, you know, there have been helicopters in addition to the South African National Defense Force helicopters, helicopters from the Malawi. But, you have to understand, in South Africa and Zimbabwe, they've also got their own problems because of flooding. And a lot of the helicopters from Zimbabwe are involved in the war in Congo.

HARRIS: Understood. And they also understand the problem with the supplies that are being promised by the U.S. and other nations? They have the problem of no place to land any supply planes to fly that equipment in, correct?

STRAND: That's true. Most of the stuff has to be transported on small planes from land on road. And from there, it has to be trucked to the displacement centers they are setting up. And there's -- and, you know, one of the big problems is: They also have to get fuel up here for those trucks; there's no fuel up here any more.

HARRIS: Cynde Strande, reporting live from Shalaquan (ph), Mozambique, we thank you very much.

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