The worst locust invasion in 25 years has wreaked havoc in East Africa, with some farmers in Ethiopia's northern Amhara state having lost nearly 100% of their crop of staple grain, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The FAO confirmed that swarms could vary from less than one square kilometre to several hundred, with each square kilometre containing at least 40 million insects.
According to the FAO, East Africa's larger-than-normal locust populations are thought to have spread from Yemen.
Ethiopian Airlines reported that a swarm of locusts had forced one of its passenger planes off its course in Ethiopia last week.
According to the airline, pilots were preparing to land the flight from Djibouti to Dire Dawa when clouds of insects slammed into the plane's engines, windshield, and nose, forcing the plane to land in the capital Addis Ababa instead. – Zoë van Rooyen
