Disasters

At 01.30 local time on 22 June, a 5.9 magnitude earthquake struck the Central Region of Afghanistan impacting Paktika and Khost provinces. The earthquake – which was recorded at a depth of 10 km – was reportedly felt in neighbouring provinces including Kabul,...

Due to heavy rainfall over the past week in the Northeastern Indian states there is an increase of water level observed in the North Eastern part of Bangladesh which led a serious flood in that region. Mainly several places of the 5 districts in that region...

Heavy rainfall has been affecting northeastern India (in particular Arunchal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya States) since 13 May, triggering landslides and causing river overflow and floods that have resulted in casualties and damage. Media report, as of 16...

On 12 May 2022, the local government of Galkacyo hosted an inter-agency coordination meeting where they requested assistance from humanitarian partners to address the immediate and urgent humanitarian needs assessed in 18 out of 20 makeshift camps located in...

The current cholera outbreak in Bentiu, is in an area with a population of 300,000 people living in formal and informal camps. Despite 2 rounds of oral cholera vaccine, transmission is continuing due to population movement and poor conditions. The outbreak...

This year, the rainy season in Venezuela has been atypical. As a result, on 27 April, the states of Mérida, Zulia, Trujillo, Táchira, and the Capital District and Greater Caracas were declared in a state of emergency. On 27 May, an orange alert was declared...

On 23 April 2022, the government reported cholera cases in Uvinza DC (Kigoma region) and Tanganyika DC (Katavi region). By 28 April 2022, the outbreak had spread to other areas along the lake shores of Lake Tanganyika with a total of 129 symptomatically...

The health authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo today declared an outbreak of Ebola after a case was confirmed in Mbandaka, a city in the north-western Equateur Province. This is the third outbreak in the province since 2018. (WHO, 23 Apr 2021) ...

On Thursday 21 April 2022, Liberia Health Ministry declared a measles outbreak affecting 14 of the 15 counties in the country. According to the Liberian Government, the outbreak is a result of low immunization rates, due to disruption of immunization...

On 11 April 2022, a cholera outbreak was declared in Zambia with its index case reported in Mtendere compound which has a population of 106,128 within Chelstone Subdistrict and Matero with a population of 356,462, within Lusaka. By 18 April 2022, the outbreak...

On 11-13 April, severe flooding and landslides caused by heavy rainfall affected southern and south-eastern South Africa, particularly the Provinces of KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape. According to national authorities, 443 people died in KwaZulu-Natal and...

Tropical Depression MEGI (named "Agaton" in the Philippines) formed over the western Philippine Sea on 9 April as a tropical low and on 10 April, intensified as a tropical storm approaching Eastern Samar (Eastern Visayas Region, central Philippines). On 11...

The significant reduction in agricultural production in Sri Lanka, compounded by the rising prices of fuel and basic food items, have made food unaffordable for a segment of the population, and the government has forecasted food shortages during the next...

On 26 March, a 6.0-magnitude earthquake was recorded in Ecuador at approximately 11:28 pm. According to Special Seismic Report 2022-001 issued by the Geophysics Institute (IGEPN), the epicentre was located off the coast of Esmeraldas at a depth of 28 km...

Heavy rainfall has been affecting most of Colombia (particularly Andean, and Pacific regions) since the beginning of the "first rainy season" (which lasts from mid-March to June), triggering landslides, causing rivers to overflow and floods that have resulted...

Tropical storm GOMBE formed on 7 March over the Indian Ocean well off the coast of Madagascar, made landfall over southern Antsiranana Province (north-eastern Madagascar) in the late evening (UTC) of 7 March, with maximum sustained winds up to 65 km/h. On 8...

The health authorities in Malawi have declared an outbreak of wild poliovirus type 1 after a case was detected in a young child in the capital Lilongwe. This is the first case of wild poliovirus in Africa in more than five years after Africa was declared free...

A new tropical cyclone named EMNATI formed over the central Indian Ocean on 16 February and is moving west-southwestwards over central Madagascar. On 18 February at 0.00 UTC, its centre was located 660 km north of Rodrigues Island (Mauritius), with maximum...

Since 2017, the country has been facing one of the worst drought crises since the 1990s. Rains continue to be rare, and production does not even cover 1% of the country's food needs. The 2021-2022 agro-pastoral campaign was characterized by a late start and...

Tropical Cyclone Batsirai has intensified and is now moving west/west-south-west at about 19 kilometres an hour (kh/h). Batsirai is expected to pass by Mauritius at the end of the day today, 2 February, and Reunion tomorrow morning, 3 February, according to...

A large eruption of the Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha-apai underwater volcano in the evening of 15 January (at 17:26 local time) caused a tsunami and ash fall in Tonga (total pop. 105,000 people). The volcanic eruption has continued throughout the day with satellite...

In the region, Euphrates & Tigris rivers are currently experiencing drought conditions, resulting in lower river flow, and affecting dam storage. The current season is the second driest in 40 years. Iraq is anticipating a serious drought this summer following...

On Saturday, 14 August a major 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit Haiti. According to Haiti’s Office for Civil Protection, 227 have died and the figure is sadly expected to increase in the coming hours. Preliminary reports by Haitian Red Cross volunteers and IFRC...

The Iranian climate is mostly arid or semi-arid and it is heavily affected by depleting water resources, as a result of rising demand, salinization, groundwaters overexploitation, and increasing drought frequency. The country, where groundwater is the primary...

Since autumn 2020, unseasonably low levels of rainfall across the eastern region of the Mediterranean Basin, have contributed to drought conditions in Syria and Iraq. Given the country's semi-arid climate, the annual water balance is determined by...

Several districts in the provinces of Balochistan and Sindh experience drought conditions which have resulted in increased food insecurity. Between October 2020 and March 2021, the impact of La Niña caused below normal rainfall in drought prone areas of...

A polio outbreak has been declared in Yemen following 15 reported cases of vaccine derived poliovirus type 1 (cVDPV1) in the first weeks of August 2020. The cases were detected in different districts of Sa’ada Governorate, in the north-west of the country...

A Desert Locust infestation has been ravaging crop and pasture-land, as well as trees and other vegetation since June 2019 in parts of Afar, Amhara, Somali and Tigray regions. The swarms have produced hopper bands that have covered more than 174 square...

The cholera outbreak in Cameroon, officially declared by the Ministry of Health on 15 July 2018, is steadily declining, after peaking in week 29 with 42 cases. In week 32 (week ending 12 August 2018), four new suspected cholera cases were reported, compared...

On 15 September 2017, the Nigeria Federal Ministry of Health notified WHO of a confirmed yellow fever case in Ifelodun Local Government Area (LGA), Kwara State...Based on the available information, the likelihood of further spread among the local population...

In January 2014, the Government of Kenya declared an impending drought with an estimated 1.6 million people affected. After a poor performance of the long rains between March and May 2014 in the arid and semi-arid zones, the drought situation continued to...