Mango tree saves top Malawian musician from death in floods

Hit musician Giboh Pearson survived the devastating floods in southern Malawi by climbing a mango tree.

Pearson, who lives at Bokosi village in the Phalombe district, woke up to find his mattress floating in water.

“At around 4am, I felt like my body was moving. I heard voices shouting my name from outside, and I realised my mattress was floating in water that had filled up the house to waist level. The moment I got out of the house, another powerful body of water arrived and knocked my house to the ground. My car got carried away and smashed into a nearby church and everyone was confused until one man shouted, ‘Let’s climb trees!’.”

Pearson said he and his neighbours, about 14 people, climbed into the mango trees and stayed there for two and a half hours until the waters calmed down.

Cyclone Freddy, the longest cyclone on record, has claimed 220 lives in Malawi and left thousands of people homeless. Fourteen days of national mourning have been declared.

Read more in Daily Maverick: “Cyclone Freddy’s deadly trail of destruction a grim reminder of the need to prioritise climate adaptation”

Pearson, whose song Idzathera mapenate (It will end in penalties) was a hit, says he has lost all his belongings including his recording equipment.

“By the grace of God we survived by climbing into the trees,” he said.

Watson Kapalamula and his children were swept away by flood waters and caught in a fig tree. (Photo: Supplied)

‘Swept us away’

The floods and mudslides caused by Cyclone Freddy have devastated the Phalombe district in the south of Malawi. (Photo: Supplied)

Where once there were homes, nothing is left. (Photo: Supplied)