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In Brief

THIS EMERGENCY APPEAL SEEKS CHF 912,248 (EUR 592,446 OR USD 717,176) IN CASH, KIND, OR SERVICES TO ASSIST 10,000 BENEFICIARIES (2,000 FAMILIES) FOR 3 MONTHS

All International Federation assistance seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct and is committed to the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response in delivering assistance to the most vulnerable. For support to or for further information concerning Federation programmes or operations in this or other countries, or for a full description of the national society profile, pleasea ccess the Federation's website at http://www.ifrc.org

The situation

Heavy rains have fallen over the Dominican Republic and Haiti on the island of Hispaniola for more than two weeks, causing serious flooding throughout the two countries. Specific data coming out of Haiti and the Dominican Republic is unreliable given the lack of communication and the inaccessibility of many of the affected areas; the figures initially provided by the Dominican Red Cross (DRC) and the Haitian National Red Cross Society (HNRCS) on 26 May have significantly increased as more rescue teams arrive in the affected areas and the extent of the damage is fully understood. Media reports from 27 May place the death toll in the two countries between 500 and 2,000 people. In the Haitian community of Mapou, 300 bodies have been counted thus far, but Haiti's Civil Protection Agency fears that that figure could be as high as 1,000. The rains are expected to continueo ver the next days. The mortality figure continues to rise as more areas are reached by assessment teams. The beneficiary numbe r may therefore rise beyond the planned 2 000 families in the coming days. Any adjustments to beneficiary numbers and the corresponding budget will be reflectedin operations updates.

In the Dominican Republic, the worst flooding has occurred in the south, northwest, northeastparts of the country and in districts close to the capital city of Santo Domingo. In particular, more than 300 homes have collapsed and 120 houses were swept away in the municipality of Jimaní in the Province of Independencia. In Jimanía lone, which is located on the border with Haiti, some 300 bodies have been recovered and another 361 people are still reported missing.

Throughout the Dominican Republic homes and entire communities have been swept away by flood waters, cutting off villages and affecting more than 1,200 families. I n the Provinces of Duarte and Montecristi, assessments indicate that a total of 3,000 families and 1,000 families respectively have been affected by the floods. In Santo Domingo, some 400 families in the communities of Saguasa and Chirino were cut off when the Ozama River burst its banks. Floods have also been reported in La Zurza, the northern-most area of the capital.Brid ges were destroyed or partially collapsed in Villa Jaragua-Jimaní, and flooded streets were reported in Sabana de la Mar. In addition, the communities of Cole and Majagual have been cut off after the collapse of the Navega-Moca highway bridge.

In the municipality of Arenoso, Duarte Province, 100 families have taken shelter in the Salome Ureña School. Also in the Province of Duarte, the communities of Los Peinados, Payabo, Los Contreras, El Güayabo, El Mango, La Jagüa, Jurungo, La Güama, Villa Maria, Las Carreras, La Garza, Los Cacaos, El Laurel, Barrio Lindo, Atronca Perro, El Polvorín, Hostos, La Verde, La Cueva de Cívicos and Los Coles have been affected. Damage has also been reported in Mata Yaya, Hondo Valle and Sabana Larga in the Province of San Juan de la Maguana. Furthermore, thousands of hectares of rice and plantain crops throughout the country have been destroyed.

In Haiti, the most seriously affected areas are the south, southeast and western regions of the country, where approximately 450 bodies have been recovered. In the SouthE ast Department, the communities of Thiotte, Marigot, Peredo, Belle Anse (Mapou), Mainet and Marbial have all been seriously affected by flooding.Mapou, a town of several thousand, located 50 kilometres southeast of the capital of Port -au-Prince, is still isolated by mud and landslides. The town sits in a valley that often floods when it rains. In the region of Jacmel, also in the South East Department, the town of Galet Maro (Gosier) has reported 100 dead, 150 injured, 70 missing, 500 homes destroyed and 70 homes damaged. Communities in the South Department have been affected by the overflow of the Grande Passe and Gruegue rivers.

In Fonds Verrettes, located in the West Department on the border with the Dominican Republic, the only road leading to the town has been cut off and the World Food Programme (WFP) has reported that around 500 houses have been swept away. Some 158 people are missing from Fonds Verrettes and are presumed dead. Also in the West Department, the Momance, Rouyonne and Cormier rivers have burst their banks, blocking the national highway. The heavy losses in Haiti are being attributed to widespread deforestation throughout the i m poverished country which increases the population's vulnerability to natural disasters such as this.

Given the seriousness of the situation and the daily increase of those affected, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is launching an international appeal with the principal objective to provide assistance to reduce the impact of the flooding on those affected.

The needs

Immediate needs:

The devastating floods have swept away the homes and all possessions of thousands of people in the Dominican Republic and Haiti. There is an urgent need for food and drinking water as well as for sheets, mattresses, hygiene kits, kitchen sets and plastic sheeting. Given the contamination of water sources, the flooding of latrines and the risks relating to vectors, there are concerns of imminent outbreaks of disease.

Longer-term needs

The current appeal is for a three month period. The longer-term needs of the affected population will be reviewed by the assessment teams and may form the basis of a revised appeal. In addition, mobilizing Red Cross volunteer resources including national intervention team (NIT) members, community-oriented work focusing on awareness-raising and on hygiene, sanitation and disaster preparedness will be carried out. Given the approach of the hurricane season in the region (between June and October), this appeal will form the basis for initiating disaster preparedness initiatives and, should additional funding be available, will provide an opportunity to begin planning in this respect.

Coordination

The ICRC maintains its role as lead agency in Haiti, responsible for the Movement coordination of international support to the Haitian National Red Cross Society.

From the outset of the disaster, the DRC and the HNRCS have liaised with the Federation's Panama Regional Delegation and the Pan American Disaster Response Unit (PADRU). PADRU's delegates are experts in the field of logistics, disaster management and water and sanitation and are working with the National Societies coordinating the assessments and working on the plan of action. The decision was taken to launch an emergency appeal and the following personnel have been deployed from PADRU: to the Dominican Republic: the Head of PADRU, a disaster management delegate, an information delegate and an information officer; and to Haiti: a disaster management delegate and the regional officer from the Secretariat.

The Federation is coordinating its emergency response with Partner National Societies (PNS), particularly the American Red Cross, the French Red Cross, the Netherlands Red Cross and the Spanish Red Cross Societies. At headquarters and field level, the Federation is ensuring coordination with external partners including local authorities, OFDA, ECHO, OXFAM, the World Food Programme (WFP), OCHA, UNDP and Telecommunications without Borders in order to avoid duplication and to maximize resources.

The proposed operation

In the Dominican Republic, the Red Cross branches of Barahona, Duvergé, Los Ríos and Jimaní, have been providing services such as search and rescue, in coordination with the Civil Defence and the Fire Brigade, as well as recovery of bodies, support to affected families and assessment of damage. The Dominican Red Cross has mobiliz ed volunteers trained in psychosocial support and first aid to the affected areas, as well as medicines to ensure initial response. In addition, professional psychologists from the psychosocial support unit are being deployedto the worst -affected areas.

The National Society's contingency and disaster management system was activated including the internal emergency operations centre, and two emergency operations posts were set up in Bajo Yuna (Duarte Province) and in Jimaní. The Dominican Red Cross activated its contingency plan, which was recently finalized with the support of the Federation/Pan American Disaster Response Unit and trained human resources, such as NITs have been deployed.

The DRC/Federation plans to concentrate assistance in the area of Jimaní since it is the worst affected by the flooding, and will also provide relief to beneficiaries in the Provinces of Duarte and Montecristi. To date, 250 containers of water, 100 boxes of biscuits, 25 bags of bread and four tents have been dispatched from the Dominican Red Cross headquarters to Jimaní.

On 25 May, 2 ambulances from Port-au-Prince with 12 Haitian National Red Cross Society volunteers trained in first aid attempted to reach Fonds Verrettes; however, since the road was blocked by flood w aters, the team was not able to reach the area. In Haiti, given that there is a large concentration of aid agencies which propose to assist those affected by the flooding in Fonds Verrettes, the HNRCS/Federation aims to target aid in the South East Department, focusing on the area of Belle Anse (Mapou). The Haitian National Red Cross Society has a branch in Jacmel in the South East Department in which it is therefore planned to set up the HNRCS/Federation operations centre.

Objectives and activities planned

Emergency relief (food and non-food)

Evaluations in the field are continuing. In Haiti, in particular, there are difficulties in accessing the communities which are hardest hit given that they are cut off by flood waters and landslides. As a result, it is necessary to conduct aerial surveys of the affected regions. On 27 May an assessment team conducted a survey by helicopter provided by OCHA and the French military; the team is composed of a logistician and a doctor from the ICRC and the head of the Haitian National Red Cross Society disaster management department. On 26 May, a team composed of representatives of the HNRCS, the Netherlands Red Cross and the Federation undertook a mission by road to Jacmel to assess the situation in the area. Statistics relating to affected regions are constantly fluctuating as rescue workers continue to reach previously-inaccessible areas. As a result, decisions regarding the number of beneficiaries to be assisted in each country will be taken once further details are available from assessment reports.

Objective: 2,000 beneficiary families in the Dominican Republic and Haiti will have received food and non-food relief to assist them in recovering from the effects of the flooding.

Activities planned to reach this objective:

Distribution of food packages including drinking water for a three month period to 2,000 beneficiary families. This will be undertaken through two distributions at field level in late May/early June and July 2004.

Distribution of 6,500 pieces of plastic sheeting to 2,000 flood-stricken families in order to assist with shelter needs.

Distribution of 2,000 kitchen kits to beneficiary familiesconsistin g of 2 cooking pots, 1fr ying pan, 4 metal bowls, 5 metal plates, 5 metal cups, 5 spoons, 5 forks, 5 knives, 1 kitchen knife and 1 wooden spoon.

Distribution of 2,000 hygiene kits to beneficiary families consisting of toilet paper, towels, tooth brushes, tooth paste, soap, shampoo, sanitary towels, razor and a refuse bag.

The American Red Cross is contributing 1,000 plastic sheets, 155 tents, 5,000 sheets and 2,000 jerry cans to the operationfro m pre-positioned stocks in PADRU. The Federation will ensure transportation and distribution of these goods to the beneficiary population. The Spanish Red Cross is providing essential relief items for this operation.

Health

With the assistance of the Federation, the Dominican and Haitian Red Cross Societies will provide technical and operational support to volunteer personnel in order to carry out community health and water and sanitation activities, in coordination with OXFAM. The Red Cross's health activities in the two countries will focus on food security, vector control, water supply and quality, disposal of solid waste, health education and psychosocial support.

Objective 1: 2,000 beneficiary families will have benefited from the distribution of health relief items, reducing their vulnerability to disease.

Activities planned to reach this objective:

• Facilitation ofthe N ational Societies in carrying out surveys of affected areas.
  
  
• Support for the distribution of food to affected families.
  
  
• Distribution of im pregnated mosquito netsto affected families (th ree per family).
  
  
• Distribution of water purification powder (water maker).
  
  
• Cleaning of contaminated wells.
  
  
• Purchaseof tools to assist in the disposal of solid waste.
  
  
• Facilitation ofcoordi nation with local authorities to adequately manage the disposal of solid waste.
  
  
• Evaluation of the sanitary situationin affected communities.
  
  
• Construction ofl atrines in affected areas.

Objective 2: Targeted communities affected by the floods will have an increased awareness of health, hygiene and sanitation issues.

Activities planned to reach this objective:

• Design of educational materials focusing on key public health messages and support o f r the distribution of these materials.
  
  
• Support to volunteer promoters in educating communities about hygiene and disease prevention, including STDs and HIV/AIDS.
  
  
• Promotion of the use of the Participatory Hygiene and SanitationTra nsformation(PHAST) methodology.
  
  
• Support for the training of community groups in aspects of water treatment and storage.
  
  
• Support for the training of community groups in the management of solid waste in the home and in the community.
  
  
• Facilitation of the promotion of hygienic practices.
  
  
• Support for training initiatives addressing the use and maintenance of latrines.

Objective 3: Targeted communities will have benefited from psychosocial support and family linking and tracing projects, improving the overall well being of the beneficiaries.

Activities planned to reach this objective:

• Through the Psychological Support Unit of the Dominican Red Cross, provision of counselling support to those who have been affected by the floods.
  
  
• Given the experience of the Dominican Red Cross in this area, support to the DRC in training Haitian National Red Cross Societyv olunteers in how to provide psychosocial assistance.
  
  
• Collaboration with the ICRC Family Linking and Tracing activities is taking place.

Strengthening of response capacity

Objective 1: The capacities of the communities in the affected areas will have been strengthened.

Activities planned to reach this objective:

• Implementation of early warning systems in the communities, using low-cost monitoring equipment.
  
  
• Holding of community workshops to raise awareness in disaster preparedness.
  
  
• Training in shelter management.

Objective 2: The capacities of Red Cross branches on the Haitian/Dominican Republic border will have been strengthened.

Activities planned to reach this objective:

• Evaluation of the capacities of Red Cross branches in the region affected by floods.
  
  
• Training of volunteers, primarily in first aid.
  
  
• Equipping of branches with basic emergency response material, basic office furniture, stretchers, first aid kits, t-shirtsa nd aprons with the Red Cross emblem.
  
  
• Work with pairs of branches cross-border in the flood-affected region, and encourage and support collaboration between branchesin identifying vulnerable groups, evaluating their needs and providing basic services and assistance.

Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement -P rinciples and priorities

The Federation is working with the Haitian and Dominican Red CrossSo cieties to assist the most vulnerable. The planned operation, as well as search and rescue and emergency assistance activities carried out to date, are based upon the principle of humanity; beneficiary selection criteria focuses on the level of vulnerability of those affected, respect of the culture of the beneficiaries, and ensuring gender sensitivity.

Activities planned for this appeal are based on the SPHERE project humanitarian charter and the code of conduct for emergency response. The operation is guided by principles and rules relating to transparency in the drawing up and dissemination of narrative and financial reports. All objectives put forward in the appeal are in line with Strategy 2010, as well as the Strategy for the Movement and the Principles and Rules of the Movement.

Communications - Advocacy and Public information

The provision of information influencing public opinion regarding the Red Cross is a key activity under the current circumstances. From this point of view, relations with the media are particularly important in order to convey the message of the Red Cross Movement. The Movement will strongly advocate in favour of the respect of human dignity and the Fundamental Principles.

Capacity of the National Societies

The Haitian National Red Cross Society was founded in 1932. It covers the entire national territory with 13 regional branches, including the Port-au-Prince branch. The National Society benefits from some 3,500 volunteers. As of March 2004, the Haitian National Red Cross Society, with the support of the Federation, is implementing an operation in response to the social unrest, focusing particularly on the north of the country. The Netherlands Red Cross has been working in the South East Department of the country for several years, as a result of which the branch of Jacmel has been considerably reinforced. The Federation and its partners are committed to working with the HNRCS in order to strengthen its capacities in view of the challenging humanitarian environment.

The relief department of the Dominican Red Cross was created following hurricane David in 1979, following which disaster response and preparedness programmes were begun. The Dominican Red Cross has a wide experience in managing relief operations. Recently, in November 2003, floods hit the northern provinces of the country and the DRC successfully carried out an operation to assist over 17,000 beneficiaries. With this operation the involved branches involved developed the capacity and experience to work with communities.Th e National Society benefits from trained, experienced national intervention team members and has a psychosocial support unit including professional psychologists.

Capacity of the Federation

The Federation has a country office in the Dominican Republic, although capacity has been much reduced in view of the new field structure. The Head of PADRU anddis aster management delegate from PADRU, together with an information delegate from the Lima Regional Delegation were deployed to the Dominican Republic. The Federation currently has a country office in Haiti with a Federation representative and an information and reporting delegate. The Pan American Disaster Response Unit has deployed a disaster management/telecommunications delegate to Haiti and the regional officer from the Secretariat travelled to Haiti on 27 May. In addition, the Regional Delegation's health delegate was mobilized to Haiti.S upport in the area of finance and donor reporting are provided by the Regional Finance Unit and the Regional Reporting Unitin Pa nama.

Monitoring and evaluation

Monitoring with regard to the implementation of activities outlined in this appeal and objectiv es set out in the plan of action will be carried out jointly by the National Societiesand the Federation. Standard Federation narrative and financial reporting will be ensured on a regular basis as a means of monitoring the progress and developments in the area.

Budget summary

The budget line in the appeal budget relating to logistics reflects the high costs of transportation given logistics constraints in the affected area.

For further information specifically related to this operation please contact:

• In the Dominican Republic:D ominican Red Cross, Ligia Leroux, President; email cruz.roja@codetel.net.do, phone 1-809-682-3793, fax 1-809-688-8044
  
  
• In Haiti: Haitian National Red Cross Society, Michaèle Amédée Gédéon, President; email croroha@haitiworld.com, phone 509-510-9813, fax 509223-1054
  
  
• In Panama: Pan American Disaster Response Unit (PADRU), Nelson Castaño, Head of PADRU; email ifrcpa07@ifrc.org, phone 507-316-1001, fax 507-316-1082
  
  
• In Geneva: Olaug Bergseth, Federation Regional Officer, Americas Department; email olaug.bergseth@ifrc.org, phone 41-22-730-4535, fax 41-22-733-0395

For longer-term programmes, please refer to the Federation's Annual Appeal.

Abbas Gullet
Director
National Society and Field Support Division

Markku Niskala
Secretary General