Written by Stephanie Kriner, Staff Writer,
RedCross.org
As the Nile River recedes, the effects
of massive flooding in Sudan are slowly emerging: destroyed schools, crumbled
mosques, mud-covered crops and vacant tracks of land where homes and villages
once stood. While relief workers scramble to help disaster victims, they
prepare for another potential round of devastation in September.
The governor of Nile River state, Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid, said this year's floods, which occurred in early August, were the worse in many years. Flood victims are in critical need of drinking water, medicines and shelter, according to a recent assessment by government and relief workers.
As relief workers struggle to tend to flood victims' emergency needs, they are eyeing the long-term impacts of the disaster. Hamid said that about 70,000 fedars (a fedar is roughly the same size as an acre) of farmland were damaged. The disaster followed two consecutive years of drought, which already left the country in need of food aid. An escalation of Sudan's 18-year civil war, which displaced hundreds, including farmers, further strained the country's ability to feed itself.
"The losses and yield reductions caused by the floods are likely to worsen the already unfavorable harvest outlook," a U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization report stated.
Still, the disaster wasn't as bad as it could have been. The Nile reached its highest level in more than two decades, raising fears that this year's floods would rival those of 1998, when dozens were killed and 2 million left homeless. Luckily, the flood level stabilized before the country's worst fears materialized.
In addition to the obvious structural damages, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has reported a health risk in affected populations. "We fear the spread of disease and cases of eye and chest infection have begun to be reported," said Spanish Red Cross relief worker Joan Nadal.
In Sinnar, River Nile and Khartoum states, Red Crescent volunteers are teaching villagers how to prevent the spread of water-borne disease. They also are digging drainage canals to clear areas of contaminated floodwaters and spraying stagnant waters with insecticides to prevent malaria-carrying mosquitoes from breeding.
"Our immediate priority is to assist those made homeless with shelter and clean water as quickly as possible," Saraswathi Pasupathy, a Federation delegate, said in a Red Cross report.
Red Cross workers also are concerned about the possibility of more flooding in September, when the yearly rainy season begins. Volunteers are distributing sandbags to help communities along the Nile to prepare. However, the sandbags would provide little protection against another massive wave of flooding.
"We are worried that people will be hit twice by the floods. It will take a great deal of time to rebuild their lives, time they do not have if the next wave of water comes soon," Saraswathi said. "Chances are that for those who do manage to construct some kind of shelter, they will lose it once again."
All American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. The Red Cross also supplies nearly half of the nation's lifesaving blood. This, too, is made possible by generous voluntary donations. To help the victims of disaster, you may make a secure online credit card donation or call 1-800-HELP NOW (1-800-435-7669) or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Or you may send your donation to your local Red Cross or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013. To donate blood, please call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (1-800-448-3543), or contact your local Red Cross to find out about upcoming blood drives.
=A9 Copyright 2001 The American National Red Cross. All Rights Reserved.
Disclaimer
- American Red Cross
- All American Red Cross disaster assistance is provided at no cost, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. The Red Cross also supplies nearly half of the nation's lifesaving blood. This, too, is made possible by generous voluntary donations. To help the victims of disaster, you may make a secure online credit card donation or call 1-800-HELP NOW (1-800-435-7669) or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Or you may send your donation to your local Red Cross or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013. To donate blood, please call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (1-800-448-3543), or contact your local Red Cross to find out about upcoming blood drives. © Copyright, The American National Red Cross. All Rights Reserved.