Eswatini Meteorology department's weather forecast for the 5th November was isolated thundershowers and rain showers being warm to hot in the Lowveld. A hailstorm with strong winds and hail stones as big as a child's fist was experienced on Saturday 5 November 2022 night, affecting mostly Nsingizini and Nsubane communities under Hosea and Somntongo in the Shiselweni region. The affected communities are in the Lowveld of the country.

An estimated 1,058 people (213 households) were affected by the storm with some families losing their roofs which were blown away or roofing sheets riddled by the hailstones. Window glasses were also shattered and household furniture, food, and other documents soaked in water. School uniforms and books for school pupils were not spared. The affected people were exposed to more danger as they had to sleep in that day in the yet-to-be-fixed structures as no support had been rendered yet.

Baphalali Eswatini Red Cross Society (BERCS) mobilized and deployed four volunteers and two officers who conducted the rapid household assessment through interpersonal interviews with the household heads on the 6th November 2022. The standard rapid assessment tool was used. The National Society also provided psychological support to the distraught communities. On 7th November, a joint assessment was further done with National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA), where available response material was 16 tarpaulins and 30 food parcels were disbursed on the subsequent days.

Scope and Scale

From the joint assessment conducted with NDMA, the community reiterated the need for support on shelter, food, and school materials destroyed. The communities are subsistent farmers who thrive on agricultural activities such as crops and poultry. Their economic status categorizes them as the most vulnerable, which means they may struggle to recover from the impact of the storm.

Assessments further revealed that food items were destroyed by the water as roofs have now become porous following impact of the hailstones. According to the IPC Eswatini Acute Food Insecurity analysis, populations in Shiselweni are in IPC 3 (crisis). Households which already food insecure would have their situation exacerbated thus a need to support them to meet food needs. Moreover, other household items such as furniture, school books, and uniforms were not spared. High vulnerability entails that the household's important documents were also not spared.

The affected communities have some vulnerabilities including child-headed households, the elderly, children under five years and people suffering from chronic diseases that pull the limited resources. Communities affected by hailstorms in the past received support on shelter but not all the losses are compensated. Some who lost their livelihoods could not be assisted due to limited available resources. For example, commercial vegetable farmers need more investment to support them and also field crop support has been less supported in the past.