Hurricane Frances - Aug 2004

The Department of Disaster Management (DDM) is continuing efforts to improve its performance and efficiency levels as well as that of its partners.

Recently, the department in collaboration with the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA) through the Regional Comprehensive Disaster Management Harmonization Implementation Project which is funded by the Department for International Development (DFID) and Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), embarked on a training session in pursuit of this objective.

The three-day training focused on a Results-Based Management …

Explanatory Memorandum

1 - Rationale, needs and target population :

1.1. - Rationale :

The Caribbean region experiences multiple natural disasters. Tropical storms often take the form of a hurricane1, and the hurricane season lasts for six months. There are also floods, flash floods, tsunamis, landslides and mudslides. Some islands suffer from earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The physical risk is combined with socioeconomic factors, such as high population density, fast demographic growth and great poverty.

Location of operation:CARIBBEAN

Amount of decision: EUR 500,000

Decision reference number: ECHO/-CR/BUD/2005/01000

Explanatory Memorandum

1 - Rationale, needs and target population:

1.1. - Rationale:

Church World Service Emergency Response Program

Long after Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne exhausted themselves, USAID continues to play a role in their clean-up in many Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) countries.

USAID has provided an estimated $22 million in assistance in the Caribbean in response to the hurricane devastation of the late summer - early autumn months, directed from USAID's Office on Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA).

Flood Waters in Haiti after Hurricane Jeanne

The U.S.

USAID plans to increase efforts aggressively to form public - private partnerships in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region, Assistant Administrator Adolfo Franco told a major conference of Caribbean and Central American Action on Wednesday, Dec, 7 in Miami, FL.

He said the push for creative partnerships was a new directive from USAID Administrator Andrew Natsios.

"Essential to achieving our vision for prosperity in the hemisphere is the notion of partnerships....

by Allison Ali in Trinidad

The end of the 2004 hurricane season has been welcomed by residents of the Caribbean.

Written by Lesly C. Hallman , Staff Writer, RedCross.org

Wednesday, December 01, 2004 -- American Red Cross volunteers around the country are breathing a collective sigh of relief thanks to the official end of hurricane season on November 30th. This year's season was one of unprecedented storms and an equally unprecedented response from the Red Cross and other relief agencies.

The Red Cross began to mobilize its staff and volunteers on Aug. 11, in advance of the arrival of Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley, expected to land in the Gulf Coast.

The devastating effect of hurricanes Ivan and Jeanne, which hit the Caribbean in September and October 2004, caused substantial damage to the economies of several countries.

The Commonwealth of The Bahamas today received another financial boost to its hurricane recovery efforts, thanks to a donation from the Organization of American States' (OAS) Inter-American Emergency Aid Fund (FONDEM).

New York, NY - In what has been the most active hurricane season in a decade, residents of Florida, Alabama, and at least seven other states on the east coast continue to recover from the devastation wrought by four major hurricanes -- Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne. In all, the storms claimed more than 70 lives in the United States, damaged more than 100,000 homes, and disrupted the lives of millions.

2004-103

Washington D.C. - The United States is launching a $100 million hurricane recovery program from Congressionally provided funds to assist the nations of the Caribbean hit by the recent hurricanes in the region. This additional $100 million will bring the total U.S. response to the disasters in the Caribbean up to $46 million for Haiti, $46.7 million for Grenada, $22.2 million for Jamaica and $2.5 million for other islands. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will administer this program.

The U.S.

Fifty-ninth General Assembly
Plenary
51st & 52nd Meetings (AM & PM)

With the number of complex emergencies on the rise worldwide, the United Nations General Assembly today tackled one of the international community’s toughest emerging challenges: the need to safeguard the well-being of civilians, ensure the security of relief workers, and promote recovery and development while providing overall assistance in a manner consistent with humanitarian principles.

Richard Boucher, Spokesman, Washington, DC

The United States is launching a $100 million hurricane recovery program as part of our commitment to helping the nations of the Caribbean hit hardest by Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne.

This $100 million in assistance is in addition to our initial disaster assistance totalling $19.4 million.

United States: A Million Volunteer Hours and Counting

Volunteers have put in more than a million hours in recovery projects in the regions of the United States pummeled by multiple hurricanes and tropical storms earlier this fall.

(Extract)

In May 2004, the U.S. National Hurricane Center called for a 50% probability of an above-normal hurricane season. Several of these storms battered the Caribbean and parts of the U.S, leaving a wake of devastation.

Note: This report updates the last fact sheet dated October 20, 2004.

Sudan: UMCOR Team Heads for Darfur

The United Nations calls it "a crisis out of control." A 14-year-old resident of an internally displaced persons' camp in the region told an aid worker, "We have lost everything." To this place of loss-- the Sudanese region of Darfur-- UMCOR last week dispatched a team of workers. Over the next three weeks, the team will explore ways to expand the agency's involvement in delivering aid. United Methodist donations are already supporting UMCOR aid in the area.

By Melina Pavlides/CWS

ARCADIA, Florida - Feeling lost. Feeling tired. Feeling guilty for taking a day off. Feeling irritable, anxious, withdrawn. Worrying about neighbors, family, congregation, and friends. Can't sleep. Gaining weight. Losing weight.