Maputo, Jan. 18, 2026 (Lusa) — Mozambique Airline LAM, the nation's flag carrier, will operate a special flight to Gaza province on Monday to transport goods and emergency teams in response to the flooding affecting the region.
"LAM - Linhas Aéreas de Mozambique informs the public that, in view of the emergency situation caused by the floods and the consequent closure of National Road 1 (N1), it will operate a special flight on the Maputo-Xai-Xai-Maputo route on 19 January 2026," reads the company's document.
According to the Mozambican company, the operation is a result of the road being impassable to traffic on the Gaza-Maputo section, currently the only provincial route not served by regular flights, and aims to support ongoing emergency response actions.
"The flight is intended to transport essential goods and passengers, including technical teams and other cases considered urgent by the authorities," said LAM, expressing its willingness to support, within its operational capabilities, national efforts to respond to this emergency situation.
On Saturday, Mozambique's National Roads Administration (ANE) suspended traffic on a section of National Road 1 (N1) on the outskirts of Maputo, the country's main land route, due to the rising flow of the Incomáti River.
In a statement, ANE announced "the immediate suspension of traffic for all types of vehicles" on the Incoluane - 3 de Fevereiro section, in the region of Manhiça, Maputo province, on the border with Gaza province, southern Mozambique.
According to ANE, the rise in the flow of the Incomáti River has flooded a stretch of approximately three kilometres of the N1, and technical teams have already been deployed to monitor the situation.
South of Maputo, the N2 is also closed to traffic due to flooding, with hundreds of people stranded in the region of Boane.
At least 103 people have died and 173,000 have been affected since the start of the rainy season in Mozambique, with 1,160 houses completely destroyed and more than 4,000 partially flooded, the government said on Friday, declaring a national red alert.
SYCo/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
