Antananarivo, Mar 9 (IANS): At least 10 people have been killed and three others remain missing after tropical cyclone Freddy returned to the southwestern coast of Madagascar, the National Office for Risk and Disaster Management (BNGRC) announced .

Altogether 17 people have been killed by the cyclone in Madagascar since it first hit the Indian Ocean island country in February before hitting the Mozambican coast, reports Xinhua news agency.

The cyclone made a looping path and returned to the Malagasy coast last weekend, with 72,351 people in five regions affected, the BNGRC said late Wednesday.

Meanwhile, there were 24,358 displaced people, of whom 16,367 have been accommodated in 36 reception sites, the Office added.

In addition, around 6,000 houses were flooded and 5,500 others were destroyed.

According to forecasters, Freddy continues to move away from the western coast of Madagascar and is also expected to return to sweep across Mozambique by the end of the week.