Tropical Cyclone Kenneth is seen off the coast of eastern Africa Wednesday. The storm arrived late Thursday and is the strongest on record to hit Mozambique. Image courtesy NOAA

April 26 (UPI) -- Powerful Cyclone Kenneth lashed the southeast African nation of Mozambique Friday, barely one month after Cyclone Idai arrived.

The storm, equivalent to the strength of a Category 4 hurricane, arrived late Thursday and pushed inland with sustained winds near 125 mph. Officials said Kenneth has already killed three people in Comoros, and forecasters say the region could see as many as 10 inches of rain. Experts also warned of life-threatening storm surges between 10 and 16 feet tall.


Kenneth is the strongest storm to hit Mozambique in recorded history, and officials said hundreds of thousands are at risk from floods and mudslides.

"Aside from storm damage, the greatest risk will immediately be flooding due to heavy rains," said Marc Nosbach, CARE Mozambique's country director. "At least one of the dams is close to full capacity, preventing flood water from being retained. This will make it impossible to distribute aid as roads become impassable."

The storm will also affect southern Tanzania and the Manpula region of Mozambique, meteorologists said.

Central Mozambique is still recovering from Tropical Cyclone Idai, which killed hundreds when it arrived last month.

The United Nations said it's preparing emergency aid through its World Food Program.

"We are expecting that heavy rain will provide flash floods and landslides impacting the north-eastern provinces of Cabo Delgado and Nampula," WFP spokesman Herve Verhoosel said Thursday. "More than a million people [are] struggling to get back on their feet [from Cyclone Idai]."

Warehouses in Mozambique already have 300 tons of food and the WFP urged humanitarian partners to protect the food and "weather the storm," Verhoosel said.