Severe flooding resulting from three days
of heavy rainfall in mid-October prompted the government of Somaliland
to turn to the IRC for emergency assistance. Damage was most severe in
Hargeisa, the largest city, where a torrent of water from a ruptured dam
forced 486 families to flee and killed six people. Most of these families
had been displaced people from the southern regions of Somalia. Many lost
all of their possessions.
Upon receiving the call, David Murphy,
the IRC program coordinator, immediately set up a command post and worked
with other international aid organizations to send out assessment teams
and mobilize equipment and manpower from the government for the cleanup.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees provided plastic sheeting and blankets for the affected families, the World Food Program supplied food rations and the European Union donated hand tools. Osman Abdi, head IRC administrator in Hargeisa, helped facilitate the collection and distribution of supplies to the flood victims.