When Tropical Cyclone Freddy hit the country a fortnight ago, the nation looked at a loss during the first two days of the persistent rainfall.

The damage was increasing with every passing hour. The number of people affected in different ways as on the rise too with every tick of the clock. Nature had come down heavily on Malawians and there was none who appeared to come up with a clear solution to stop the destruction in its track. 

Flash floods and landslides which left roads cut, houses collapsed and people washed away were the order of the day in the affected districts in the Southern Region.  

At the height of the cyclone devastation, unlikely heroes stood up in form of the social and lifestyle grouping, Land Rover Defenders Club. The roads were impassable and some of the worst hit areas were inaccessible.

The Land Rover Defenders Club members availed themselves. They stood guard at the Chichiri Shopping Centre when they volunteered their services to help evacuate people who were stuck. Sixteen Land Rovers, one Jeep and other vans were deployed by the group.

Executive member Ted Mhango said then: “The devastation is so bad and we know it will not be easy to manage and have anyone assisted. We are targeting those places which are hard-to-reach. Given the nature of our cars, it gives us a bit of an advantage to navigate through”

The group eventually became the focal point of the cyclone response coordination as more organisations and individuals partnered with them.

The exercise, which started with evacuating survivors from Manja 3 Ways in Blantyre, ended up with the club covering several districts, including Chiradzulu, Thyolo, Blantyre, Mulanje, Phalombe, Zomba and Neno.

Mhango said: “When we initially worked in Blantyre, we saw other needs. The people had lost everything. They had no homes, food and clothes. So we started mobilising resources through the social media platforms.” 

Organisations such as Dapp, Kips Restaurant, Nico Holdings plc, Gemira Holdings , Boiler Fuel Services and the Stanley Onjezani Kenani-led citizen response all fell for the Land Rover charm.

The different entities donated relief items such as food, clothes and money through the club. Non-members also volunteered to join them and were responsible for logistics, planning and sorting out things.

“There was help from all corners. Some brought food for the team. Some would come and fuel our cars. International volunteer doctors came along to assess and help the victims everywhere we went,” Mhango said.

But who are the Land Rover Defenders Club?

Mhango opts to describe the group as a collection of people who own Land Rovers vehicles and decided to come together and assist in offering social solutions.

He said: “Basically we are into tourism, engaging in charity initiatives and most of all, promoting the Land Rover heritage.”

The group was formed in 2021 and has a membership of 30 people. For one to qualify to be a member, you need to own a Land Rover Defender. The leadership said they will soon form a fan club which will be open to everyone.

As of March 29, the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (Dodma) reported that the number of displaced people had reached 564 239, accommodated in 577 evacuation camps.

Lives lost are 676 with 1 724 people injured and 537 missing. Dodma also reported that security agencies are continuing with the search and rescue operations.

Dodma’s director of preparedness and response the Reverend Moses Chimphepo has described the Tropical Cyclone Freddy as the worst disaster that Malawi has ever experienced.

“The impact is huge. The damage is worse than any other disaster before. The infrastructure that has been destroyed is so vast. Apart from dealing with this response period, we will need to draw up a recovery plan too,” he said.

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