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In Brief
Appeal No. 22/04; Operations Update no. 8; Period covered: 8 December 2004 to 7 January 2005; Appeal coverage: 83.7%; (click here to go directly to the attached Contributions List, also available on the website).
Appeal history:
- Launched on 22 September 2004 for CHF 4,246,000 for 6 months to assist 40,000 beneficiaries.
- Budget revised and increased to CHF 11,673,000 (USD 9,246,529 or EUR 7,515,212) to assist 50,000 beneficiaries for 6 months.
- Disaster Relief Emergency Funds (DREF) allocated: CHF 150,000
Outstanding needs: CHF 1,899,974 (USD 1,629,656 or EUR 1,227,906)
Related Emergency or Annual Appeals: Caribbean Annual Appeal (01.51/2004); Haiti Social Unrest Emergency Appeal (07/2004) and Dominican Republic & Haiti Floods Appeal (13/2004)
Operational Summary: A number of food and non-food distributions have taken place in Gonaïves and Ennery and at least four weekly aid distributions are planned for the coming weeks. To date, a total of 5,195 families in Gonaïves and Ennery have received relief items and between 20 and 30 HRCNS volunteers continue to be actively involved in distributions, together with the Federation team. Repairs to the public water distribution network are on-going and approximately half of Gonaïves' boreholes and wells have already been cleaned of mud. In accordance with the common exit strategy for all organizations providing drinking water, the French Red Cross Emergency Response Unit (ERU) gradually reduced its daily production and closed down the water treatment plant on 20 December. The treatment plant provided clean drinking water to up to 30,000 people in greater Gonaïves for more than two months until original sources could be brought back on line. Rehabilitation work in La Providence Hospital began in December and work to repair the outer walls and clean the main buildings and the hospital compound of mud and debris is well under way. The Federation water and sanitation delegate has arrived and the water and sanitation team have initiated the latrine reconstruction project. Despite this new addition to the relief team, there remains a serious lack of field delegates. In addition, the current level of funding has forced the Federation to temporarily limit the number of beneficiary families to 5,575. The coverage of the Appeal currently stands at 83.7 percent. New contributions are urgently needed to ensure that all of the objectives of this Emergency Appeal are accomplished and that assistance is provided to the most vulnerable people afflicted by the floods; particularly in the villages outside Gonaïves, where floods have direly affected more than 3,000 families.
Background
A little more than three months after Tropical Storm Jeanne's heavy rains brought on violent flash floods in northwestern Haiti the official death toll stands at over 1,800 while more than 800 remain unaccounted for. Deforestation, poverty and a general lack of preparedness were the major causes of the disproportionately high loss of life as landslides and high waters drowned people and buried a large region in mud. An estimated 300,000 people in at least eight communes in the region have been affected as a result of these devastating floods. The poor, overcrowded town of Gonaïves and its environs, which as a population of approximately 200,000, has been hardest hit. Homes and possessions were swept away in the floods, sewers and latrines overflowed and vast areas of economically vital agricultural land were destroyed. When the waters at last receded, dead bodies littered the streets. Estimates are that at least half the population in Gonaïves was severely affected. With nowhere else to go, families have returned to what remains of their homes; many having lost all their possessions. Hundreds of newly-orphaned children face an uncertain future in what was already one of the poorest countries in the world. A World Health Organization survey of displaced people revealed that nearly half of the 56 overnight shelters set up in churches and schools by the Haitian authorities (La Protection Civile) in the wake of the disaster are still being used, mostly by women and children. Flooded latrines and sewers contaminated the few available sources of fresh water. An epidemiological surveillance system was set up in the aftermath of the disaster by the Ministry of Health and its partners which continues to monitor the incidence of disease. So far no epidemic trends have been identified. Gonaïves' main hospital as well as over 90 percent of the private clinics sustained considerable damage due to the flooding. A high water table coupled with a lack of funding have stymied efforts to remove the remaining stagnant water from the streets and vacant lots which are still covered in mud and debris. Despite private citizens' and municipal contractors' best efforts, many of Gonaïves' water channels and aqueducts are still clogged with mud and refuse. Heavy machinery has been making headway in clearing badly damaged roads and mud-covered public spaces, but it is expected that, even with a dedicated labour force of two thousand, a full clean up will take at least eight months.
The Federation's revised Emergency Appeal, launched on 5 October, is based on the plan of action designed by the joint Haitian National Red Cross Society (HNRCS) / Federation Field Assessment and Coordination Team (FACT) which conducted a four-day assessment of the affected regions. The assessment focused mostly on remote areas outside Gonaïves where whole communities were cut off from transport and communications. The FACT team identified at least 3,000 seriously affected families (15,000 people) in the communes of Pilate, Gros Morne, Bassin Bleu, Anse Rouge, Port de Paix and Ennery in dire need of assistance. These people had not been identified or targeted during preliminary assessments. The plan of action prioritizes emergency relief distributions of food and non-food items in addition to shelter, health and water and sanitation interventions. The plan also includes activities to strengthen the capacity of the HNRCS, which is now facing the third consecutive catastrophe in Haiti in only one year, to respond to future disasters.
Security remains precarious, making the transportation and distribution of aid difficult. The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) comprises a multi-national military and police force of approximately 7,000 and has been mandated by the UN Security Council to assist the Haitian authorities in maintaining peace and public order. As a result, the MINUSTAH has been directly involved in providing security for the public, which up until Christmas has included escorting and/or being present during distributions of relief goods to ensure that distributions take place in the best possible conditions for everyone involved. A joint ICRC/Federation security assessment is planned for early January to determine whether distributions without MINUSTAH are indeed compatible with minimal security requirements.
The international community has responded with distributions of food and water and the provision of immediate medical attention, in spite of a complex security situation. These efforts to date, however, have been insufficient to meet the needs of many of the vulnerable in flood-affected areas, the majority of whom were already living well below the poverty line. Subsequent to the international communities' response to the immediate crisis, there will be significant needs for continued international support in the rehabilitation phase.
Operational developments
For the sixth consecutive week, the security situation in Gonaïves has remained relatively stable, but common crime and/or political violence is reportedly threatening to increase. During the previous reporting period, most NGO personnel were evacuated for a couple of days as it was feared that the unrest that was cropping up in one area of Gonaïves might spread to the rest of the city. Gonaïves has a long tradition of public demonstration that can quickly flare up into full-blown riots. A considerable number of demonstrations and barricades temporarily blocked roads, while various incidents of vehicles transporting humanitarian aid being ambushed, assaulted and looted were reported as recently as November.
As sufficient funds and human resources to implement all the objectives of this Emergency Appeal have not yet become available, the Federation team in Gonaïves, in consultation with the Panama Regional Finance Unit, has been obliged to temporarily limit the number of beneficiaries originally targeted in this appeal. In Gonaïves, the number of targeted beneficiaries presently stands at 4,285 families, instead of 7,000, while the number of beneficiary families outside Gonaïves will be limited to 1,290 in the commune of Ennery.
With support from humanitarian partners, the National Water Company, SNEP, has been able to open drainage trenches and repair part of the damaged water network. At present, one borehole is operational and supplying water to public kiosks through the network. Two more boreholes will soon be repaired. In addition, teams from OXFAM, Action Against Hunger (ACF), Médicins sans Frontières (MSF) and the French Red Cross ERU have cleaned about half of Gonaïves' 800 wells.
Apart from what appear to be a few isolated cases of contagious disease, no outbreaks of epidemics have been reported in Gonaïves. The overall health situation, which is comparable to that of other developing countries, is reportedly better than before the floods. This good news can be attributed to preventative measures such as fumigation against malaria-bearing mosquitoes, chlorination of public water and increased availability of potable water. The dissemination of health messages by radio, combined with medical consultations and free medicines provided by various humanitarian organizations, has also play a large role in improving the health situation. Nevertheless, the World Health Organization warns that the community's health remains at risk without continued close monitoring since large amounts of stagnant water and waste remain in public areas.
In bilateral initiatives outside the framework of the Federation Appeal, the German Red Cross will rehabilitate the houses of 1,500 families in the region between Port-de-Paix and Anse Rouge, while the French Red Cross is distributing hygiene kits, kitchen sets and kerosene stoves in shelters and selected vulnerable areas in Gonaïves. German Red Cross is also distributing plastic sheeting for temporary shelters.
For further information specifically related to this operation please contact:
In Haiti: Haitian National Red Cross Society, Dr. Michaèle Amédée Gédéon, President, Port-au-Prince; email croroha@haitworld.com, phone (509) 510-9813, fax (509) 223-1054
In Haiti: Hans Havik, Federation Representative, Haiti Country Office, Port-au-Prince; email ifrcht03@ifrc.org, phone (509) 513-5067, fax (509) 221-8633
In Panama: Gilberto Guevara, Head of Regional Delegation, Panama; email ifrcpa51@ifrc.org, phone (507) 317-1300, fax (507) 317-1304
In Panama: Nelson Castaño, Head of the Federation's Pan American Disaster Response Unit, Panama; email ifrcpa07@ifrc.org, phone (507) 316-1001, fax (507) 316-1082
In Geneva: Luis Luna, Federation Regional Officer, Americas Department, Geneva; email luis.luna@ifrc.org, phone (41 22) 730-4273, fax (41 22) 733-0395
All International Federation assistance seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct and is committed to the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response in delivering assistance to the most vulnerable. For support to or for further information concerning Federation programmes or operations in this or other countries, or for a full description of the national society profile, please access the Federation's website at http://www.ifrc.org
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