Malawi says death toll from this month's floods has risen to 34

Heavy rains and flooding in Malawi have killed 34 people and displaced over 6,000 households, with ongoing assessments suggesting the toll could rise. The disaster has also destroyed crops and livestock, affecting hundreds of thousands across the country.

Reuters

26 March 2026 at 09:53:12

Malawi says death toll from this month's floods has risen to 34

A woman carries a fish basket as she walks past fishermen sorting their catch on the shores of Lake Chilwa, near the border with Mozambique, in Malawi, February 20, 2026.

Eldson Chagara/Reuters

Malawi's government said on Thursday that the death toll from four days of heavy rainfall and flooding earlier this month had risen to 34.

The Department of Disaster Management Affairs said the new death toll was based on reports from 23 of Malawi's 36 councils.
On March 19 it gave a toll of 13 deaths from 16 councils.
Heavy rains and floods swept across the donor-dependent Southern African country between March 15 and 18.
The disaster management department said the death toll could rise further, as assessments are continuing in previously inaccessible areas.
So far roughly 310,000 people have been affected, with 6,155 households displaced and sheltered in 84 camps set up across the affected councils.
Livestock and crops, including tobacco, were washed away in some parts of the country. Malawi is one of the world's largest producers of burley tobacco.

-Reporting by Frank Phiri;Writing by Sfundo Parakozov;Editing by Alexander WInning/Reuters