Asia and the Pacific: Weekly Regional Humanitarian Snapshot (1 - 7 April 2025)

PHILIPPINES

On 8 April at approximately 5:51 am local time, an explosive eruption was observed from Mt. Kanlaon. The eruption produced a voluminous bent plume approximately 4,000 meters tall. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) is currently maintaining Alert Level 3 (alerts are on a scale from 1 to 5, with level 3 categorized as a "high level”). Residents are advised to stay clear of the 6-kilometer the permanent danger zone around the volcano. All government work and classes are suspended in nearby areas. Since December 2024, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has reported that 48,528 people have been affected. Currently, 19,885 people remain displaced in and outside evacuation centres. The towns of Bago, Canlaon, La Carlota, La Castellana, Moises Padilla, and Pontevedra have been advised to monitor pyroclastic flow emanating from the volcano. Immediate needs include drinking water and face masks. The DWSD has announced they are ready to provide assistance with their prepositioned stocks.

BANGLADESH

On 31 March, the embankment at polder 7/2 in Bichat village, situated along the Khulpetua River, collapsed—resulting in the washing away of approximately 200 feet of the infrastructure and triggering extensive flooding. Five villages were fully submerged, while low-lying areas in an additional five villages were partially inundated. Thousands of bighas of fishponds and agricultural land were destroyed, along with hundreds of mud houses. Delays in emergency repair enabled floodwaters to spread further, submerging additional croplands and displacing thousands of residents, many of whom sought refuge on nearby embankments.

MYANMAR

In Myanmar, ten days after the devastating earthquakes on 28 March, the full extent of the damage and casualties is still emerging. Publicly available figures indicate that over 3,500 people have died, nearly 5,000 have been injured, and more than 200 remain missing across the country. Communities in the worst-affected areas continue to struggle with widespread destruction of homes, health facilities, and critical infrastructure, along with prolonged power and water outages, disrupted telecommunications, and damaged transport routes. People left homeless are facing extreme heat during the hottest and driest month of the year, and rains have already started in Mandalay – posing an additional threat to those sheltering in the open. The Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher visited Myanmar between 4 and 6 April, meeting with affected communities and engaging with humanitarian teams to support ongoing relief efforts.