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What happened, where and when?
On 20 March 2023, the President of Ecuador declared a state of emergency for 60 days through Decree No. 693 for the provinces of Guayas, El Oro, Pichincha, Loja, Los Ríos, Bolívar, Santa Elena, Esmeraldas, Manabí, Imbabura, Chimborazo, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Napo and Azuay. The state of exception due to public calamity was based on the serious affectations to the life and material goods of the inhabitants of these provinces as a result of the serious winter season and the telluric movements that occurred on 18 March
Rainy season:
According to the National Regional Study of the El Niño Phenomenon (ERFEN) Committee, abnormal warming has been observed in the Ecuadorian sea and on the northern coast of Peru (Niño 1+2 region), registering temperatures between 27 and 29°C on the surface, which are up to 1.5 °C higher than normal. In addition to atmospheric instability and the transit of equatorial waves, these conditions led to the intensification of convective activity with intense precipitations (1).
From 1 January 2023 to date, 195 cantons have been affected by 2,503 hazardous events caused by the rainy season affecting more than 126,922 people. The provinces with the greatest impact on the population are Guayas, Los Ríos , Esmeraldas, Manabí, Santa Elena, Bolívar, Cotopaxi, El Oro, Santo Domingo de Los Tsáchilas, Imbabura, Loja an d Pichincha (2
Earthquake:
On 18 March, in the area of the Gulf of Guayaquil, a seismic event was recorded with a magnitude of 6.64 Mw, a depth of 63.1 km, and a total of 72 aftershocks between 2.1 and 4.6 MLv. Although the main earthquake and aftershocks had an epicenter in the province of Guayas, the main damages were registered in the cantons of Santa Rosa and El Guabo, the province of El Oro.
From 18 March to date, more than 3,774 people are reported to have been affected by this emergency. The provinces with the greatest impact on the population are El Oro, Guayas, and Azuay (3)
In response to these two emergencies, on 6 April 2023, the Ecuadorian Red Cross launched a DREF for Assessment with the aim of conducting a detailed Damage and Needs Assessment in 15 of the provinces reported to have been affected. Additionally, the Provincial Branches actively coordinated and monitored response interventions across different institutions. This collaborative effort aimed to prevent duplication of efforts while state agencies organized their response strategies to assist the affected families.
Floods in Esmeralda:
During the implementation of the DREF for Assessment, the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (INAMHI), through bulletin No. 27 issued on 31 May, forecasted rains of varying intensity with storms in the coastal region until 6 June, especially in Esmeraldas, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Los Ríos, Manabí, and Guayas.
On 4 June, heavy rains were recorded in the province of Esmeraldas, causing 7 rivers to overflow: Súa and Tonchigüe (Atacames canton); Teaone (Esmeraldas canton); Cube, Viche, and Blanco (Quinindé canton), Matambal (Muisne canton), which affected 7 cantons and 21 parishes. Additionally, on 6 June, the Rioverde River overflowed affecting the Rioverde canton in the Lagarto parish
From 4 June to date, more than 19,982 people are reported to have been affected by this emergency, which is included in the total 126,922 people affected by the rainy season, as well as second-order roads, houses, educational units, and crops (4)
Regarding the emergency in Esmeraldas, from 4 June to 20 June, the Provincial Branches deployed a dedicated team of 50 volunteers who actively engaged in relief efforts within the affected areas. These volunteers were involved in various essential activities, such as producing and distributing chlorine, collecting information, providing pre-hospital care, offering psychosocial support, and raising community awareness. As of now, the relief operations have resulted in the following outcomes: conducting a census for 587 families, providing pre-hospital care for 38 individuals, offering psychosocial support to 344 individuals, delivering chlorine to benefit 1,968 people, evacuating seven i ndividuals, and providing humanitarian assistance to 483 people.
Source:
(1)https://www.inocar.mil.ec/erfen_bac/cargar_boletinespdf.php?id_secc=4
(2)https://www.gestionderiesgos.gob.ec/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/SITREP-Nro.-103-Epoca-Lluviosa-01012023-al-19-06-2023.pdf
( 3 ) h t t p s : / / w w w . g e s t i o n d e r i e s g o s . g o b . e c / w p - c o n t e n t / u p l o a d s / 2 0 2 3 / 0 5 / S i t R e p - 3 5 - S i s - mo-Balao-Guayas-04052023-1.pdf (4)https://www.gestionderiesgos.gob.ec/wp-content/uploads/downloads/2023/06/SITREP-Nro-21-Esmeraldas-19.06.2023-16h00.pd