Attachments
A. Situation analysis
Description of the disaster
From 29 August to 31 August, heavy rainfall occurred in North Hamgyong Province, DPRK – in some areas more than 300 mm of rain were reported in just two days, causing the flooding of the Tumen River and its tributaries around the Chinese-DPRK border and other areas in the province. Within a particularly intense time period of four hours in the night between 30 and 31 August 2016, the waters of the river Tumen rose between six and 12 metres, causing an immediate threat to the lives of people in nearby villages. Over the three days, 193 mm of rain deluged Hoeryong City.
Beyond the rise of the Tumen River and its tributaries that would be vulnerable under such conditions, at least one pulse of water also flowed down the Tumen flood plain and made the flood even worse. These floods were further intensified due to Typhoon Lionrock which hit the coast and prevented the dissipation of the flood waters from excessive precipitation. Therefore the water was locked in the riverbed, and the surrounding areas were flash-flooded.
At least 140,000 people have been severely affected across six counties in the province of North Hamgyong in the northeast of the country. Over 30,000 houses have been damaged, submerged or completely destroyed and close to 70,000 people remain displaced.
Up to now, there have been 138 deaths reported, with a further 400 people missing and presumed dead. The number of injured people remains unknown. The flooding occurred during the night time and hit the population while they were sleeping. Natural disasters are an unusual event in this part of DPRK and the population in the affected areas were relatively unprepared, although the national early warning system was activated and people were warned of the flooding risk, many people did not leave their houses due to lack of awareness to the danger.
The latest official governmental data update was given to the international community on 14 September. Since then no new official updated numbers are available.
Winter starts early in this region – now, in the beginning of October the population is already facing sub-zero temperatures during night time. The cold temperatures are often combined with high snow fall and iced roads, further impacting the access to the affected areas.