Contents

541 African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control: meeting of national task forces, September 2011
549 Progress introducing rotavirus vaccine into Latin America and the Caribbean, 2006-2010
555 Monthly report on dracunculiasis cases, January-September 2011

Sommaire

Colombia

The rainy season in Colombia has affected more than 300,000 people as of today, caused 101 deaths and damaged 55,902 houses, 433 of which were completely destroyed. Damages were reported in 358 municipalities in 27 of the 32 departments. Recent emergencies in the last two weeks have resulted in landslides and thunderstorms in departments of Cundinamarca, Huila,
Cauca and Chocó; and flooding of Atrato and Salado rivers.

PERU – EARTHQUAKE

A 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck near the coast of Peru on Friday at 1:54pm local time. The epicenter is located 32 miles southwest of Ica. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a tsunami alert.

The information is still preliminary. The Ministry of Health is leading the health sector damage assessment, and for the moment there are no reports of damages on health or health facilities. PAHO/WHO is in constant contact with the Ministry of Health to provide any necessary support.

CENTRAL AMERICAL – FLOODS

Summary – Hurricane Rina

Rina is expected to reach the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico by Thursday as a category 1 hurricane.
Strong winds are anticipated in the northeast coast of the peninsula from north of Punta Gruesa to San Felipe, producing 8 to 16 inches of rain. A hazardous storm surge may raise water levels by 2 to 4 feet above normal tide in the coast. High winds will also likely affect the northern coast of Belize, including Belize City, and the Honduran Bay islands of Roatan and Guanaja.

Mexico

Continua la probabilidad de precipitaciones en la región debido a los remanentes de la Depresión Tropical 12E y a la llegada de un Frente Frio.

El Salvador
Las lluvias han obligado a la apertura de represas y han bloqueado carreteras, afectando a 181 de los 262 municipios de El Salvador. Se han anegado 2.000 kilómetros cuadrados, equivalentes de 10% de todo el territorio.

Autoridades de la Salud en Centroamérica han estado desplegando sus equipos en terreno para analizar los daños, realizar tareas de vigilancia y evaluar el acceso a agua y saneamiento, así como la salud mental de los afectados por las fuertes lluvias que causaron inundaciones y deslizamientos de tierra en El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras y Nicaragua.

The low pressure system that has hit Central America since October 10 has caused floods and landslides affecting 600,000 people in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua including 55,000 people displaced to 700 shelters in the countries. The Ministries of Health have reported damages to health centers and equipments, and loss of supplies. These issues put public health at risk if they are not addressed promptly. El Salvador has declared a national emergency, and Nicaragua and Guatemala has declared a state of emergency.

Managua, 31 Mayo de 2011 (OPS/OMS).

- The World Health Organization raised its global pandemic alert level to Phase 6 today. This means that sustained community transmission of a new influenza virus has now been confirmed in more than one WHO region, and that a global pandemic is now officially declared.

- It is important to note that the change in phase reflects geographical spread of the new influenza A (H1N1) virus, and not the severity of illness that it causes.

- At this time, WHO considers the overall severity of the influenza pandemic to be moderate. This assessment is based