Attachments
SITUATION OVERVIEW
At the end of January, a strong local El Niño weather pattern formed off the coast of Peru due to an abrupt increase in the surface temperature of the ocean and is expected to continue until at least April. The pattern’s torrential rains have generated devastating floods and mudslides in 24 out of the 25 regions in the country. States of Emergency have been declared in 12 regions due to the flooding risk, while seven regions have declared a State of Emergency due to sanitation risks. The rains are not expected to abate until May at the earliest.
The relentless water and mud, carrying dangerous debris, have destroyed roads, bridges, businesses and homes, as well as crucial farmland. The drainage systems in Chiclayo and Piura have collapsed due to the intensity of the rain. Sanitation is also a huge concern in these flood-affected areas, as are vector-borne illnesses, including Zika. Access to potable water, even in Lima, has become scarce. In Trujillo, where Lutheran World Relief is responding, many have lost everything. Much of the city is closed, and water supply has been shut down, affecting the city’s fresh water supply as well as irrigation to thousands of hectares of farmland.1 Damage to a major bridge across the Viru River has cut Trujillo off from its neighbor city, Chimbote, and from Lima, making it difficult to bring water and other essential resources into town and driving up scarcity
INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE EFFORTS
United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) has deployed a team to the field. The National Humanitarian Network, with the support of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is coordinating relief efforts. OCHA has begun a rapid needs assessments in Lambayeque and Piura. The Government of Peru is pledging $750 million for emergency relief efforts and $1.6 billion for economic recovery. The government has set up pumps to displace some of the water that is overwhelming the spillways. Humanitarian organizations are responding with distributions of water, clothing, food, and other non-food items such has hygiene and school kits.
While the Government of Peru’s response to this emergency is significant, recovery efforts are primarily focused on larger infrastructure recovery in the urban and peri-urban areas (such as the reconstruction of roads and bridges) and on food distributions. LWR and our local partner, CEPEDAS Norte, will reach poor, rural areas that are not prioritized for government relief and recovery services. The government has welcomed NGO participation in the disaster response to address unmet needs.