ReliefWeb

Hurricane Irma Update
- Irma caused extensive damage in Barbuda and Anguilla where 70-90% of the buildings were destroyed. WFP is in discussions with OCHA, Resident Coordinators and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) to explore possibilities to support the Islands of the Eastern Caribbean through coordination, IT and transportation support.
- Hurricane Irma has past the Dominican Republic and the northern coast of Haiti resulting in partial flooding in the north-east (Ouanaminthe, Fort-Libertel, Caracol, Ferrier, North Hole).
- Currently hurricane Irma is moving between the north coast of Cuba and the Bahamas. WFP is closely monitoring hurricane Jose which has strengthened to a category 4 and hurricane Katia.

Haiti Overview
- A Boeing 747 arrived in Haiti today from the United Nations Humanitarian Response Depot containing 64 mt of high energy biscuits (HEBs). This will allow WFP to reach 80,000 persons for 4 days and work is under-way to dispatch them to the North.
- Teams pre-positioned in Gonaives, Cap Haitien and Port de Paix have not reported any major damages, thus far, in the immediate proximity of these cities.
- Monitors are in the field and assessing the situation in remote areas. Initial reports highlight that there are significant damages to agricultural fields, livestock and banana plantations.
- Assessments will take place over the coming days to determine the number of people in need of food assistance.
- More than 10,000 people are in temporary shelters in the North.
- WFP has a contingency food stock of 3,300 mt prepositioned to rapidly cover the needs of up to 150,000 people and is ready to distribute supplies shortly.
- Discussions are ongoing with WFP’s financial service provider, DIGICEL, to be able to rapidly implement Cash-Based Transfers operations if needed.

Dominican Republic Overview
- The damage to the Dominican Republic was far less than expected, with no fatalities reported. However, more information will become available over the next 24 hours.
- 24,000 people are displaced and half of them are in shelters.
- The government has not requested international assistance and will support the affected communities.
- The Emergency Operations Center continue to keep 18 to 24 provinces on red alert, due to the possibility of landslides and floods.

Cuba Overview
- From the early hours of the day, Hurricane Irma has been bringing sea surges and high waves in the northern coastline of Guantanamo and Holguin provinces.
- The hurricane warning has been extended to cover eleven provinces in Eastern and Central Cuba, together with a Hurricane Watch in Western Cuba. Over 1 million people were evacuated, especially from the municipalities in the northern coastline in central and eastern Cuba.
- The UN Country Team continues to work on a draft Action Plan and a proposal for the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), to foster a coordinated and harmonized response prioritizing the most affected areas.
- To support the Government’s response, WFP confirmed the availability of a contingency food stock of 1,600 mt, prepositioned in Havana, Cienfuegos and Santiago de Cuba to cover the potential needs of nearly 275,000 people for one month. The Government welcomed WFP’s support and agreed to further discuss distribution details.
- WFP has five Mobile Storage Units (MSUs) in country that could be re-directed to support the Irma response.

Contacts
- Regional Bureau: Alan Brown, Regional Partnerships Officer — Alan.Brown@wfp.org