India, Indonesia, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Somalia Earthquake and Tsunami: OCHA Situation Report No. 5
Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Date: 28 Dec 2004
Ref: OCHA/GVA - 2004/0193
OCHA Situation Report No. 5
Earthquake and Tsunami
India, Indonesia, Maldives, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Thailand.
This situation report is an update on the casualties of countries affected, the needs as well as the UN system response reported to OCHA so far.
INDIA
Situation
At least 6,000 people are estimated to have been killed (3,618 in Tamil Nadu, 3,000 persons are missing in Andaman and Nicobar islands, in Andhra Pradesh 85 people were killed and 810 are missing, and149 were killed in Kerala)
UN Response
It was decided in the United Nations Disaster Management Team (DMTP) meeting that the UNICEF office in Chennai would host a coordination team to strengthen the information flow and facilitate UN programmes. The UNDMT and the UNDP Regional Disaster Reduction Adviser are contacting DMTs in the region to offer assistance in personnel and coordination tools.
INDONESIA
Situation
The Government has declared a state of emergency and welcomes international assistance. The worst affected areas are: Aceh province and North Sumatra province. The official death toll so far is 5,754. Some 15,000 people are displaced. However, those figures are expected to rise.
Requirements
According to the Coordinating Minister of People’s Welfare Office, assistance needed includes:
- Tents/shelter
- Kitchen utensils
- Plastic body bags
- Food/baby food
- Emergency medical supplies (drugs for trauma injuries, public health kits, etc)
- Clothes,
- Blankets,
- Hygiene and sanitation supplies
- Potable water supply equipment
- Generators sets
- Telecommunication equipment
- Helicopter capacity
The Government of Indonesia introduced special procedures to facilitate entries of aircraft carrying international relief, relief items, humanitarian personnel, resident journalists and staff of foreign missions traveling to Medan and Aceh. Emergency relief is exempted from customs, excise, and taxes.
UN Response
A UN team consisting of OCHA, UNSECOORD and IOM arrived in Banda Aceh. UN Agencies in Indonesia are ready to make available immediate assistance worth USD 1 million (including OCHA emergency cash grant of USD 50,000 and UNDP emergency cash grant of USD 100,000). UNDP will deploy a recovery expert. WFP allocated USD 500,000 to purchase food for immediate distribution to the affected population. WHO and UNICEF are providing 4 complete sets of health emergency kits to cover 40,000 people for 3 months. UNICEF will also send tarpaulins and family sets for 8,000 households. WHO will provide technical assistance. OCHA deployed a United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination team (UNDAC).
MALDIVES
Situation
The Government has declared a state of emergency and has appealed for international assistance. According to the Government, some two thirds of the population are affected, with 100,000 severely affected and have suffered considerable damage to dwellings.
Needs and Requirements
Preliminary assessment of relief requirements to be addressed is as follows:
- Water supplies: 4,000 containers (20 liters per unit)
- Food
- Medical supplies
- Transportation and logistics (helicopters to deliver food and water supplies, etc.)
- Shelter
- Sewerage
UN Response
UNDP released an emergency grant of USD 100,000 and will deploy an Environmental Specialist as well as two UNVs for Information Coordination. UNICEF offered to support the Government for coordination. OCHA released an emergency grant of USD 50,000 and deployed a UNDAC team. OCHA is organizing an airlift of relief items from its UN Humanitarian Response Depot located in Brindisi with the cost (goods and freight costs) entirely covered by the Norwegian Government. The plane will carry approximately 15 metric tons of goods from the OCHA stocks (tents, water containers, jerry cans, squatting plates and related tools/plastic rolls), as well as 5 New Emergency Health Kits (NEHK) of WHO.
SOMALIA
Situation
On 27 December 2004, the Government of Somalia appealed for international relief. In addition, the Puntland Government informed the Humanitarian Coordinator and the international aid agencies have appealed for immediate international emergency assistance. There are reports of a large number of displaced in Bander Beyla, Baargaal and Eyl.
Needs and Requirements
The most urgent needs include:
- Food
- Medicine
- Shelter
- Cooking utensils
- Clothes
UN Response
A meeting of the Humanitarian Response Group led to the setting up of a task force at Nairobi level which will monitor the situation and the reports coming in from various assessment missions. OCHA Somalia will serve as the focus for the collection and dissemination of reports and information and will also anchor inter agency, multi-disciplinary assessment teams that will depart for the affected coastal areas. Humanitarian actors and organizations have agreed to work under OCHA's lead to plan and implement the assessments and the necessary response. OCHA will also take the lead in organizing an aerial assessment of the affected coastal areas using UN flights. OCHA will strengthen its presence in Garowe. WFP has started moving 31MT of food to assist 2,000 people in Hafun, an island in the north of Somalia. The distribution should start as of 29 December. A WFP assessment mission from Bosasso has gone to the other areas affected by the tidal wave. A total of 1,000 MT of food is currently available in WFP stocks in Puntland. A vessel with another 1,300 MT will be dispatched soon from Mombassa to Bosasso.
SRI LANKA
Situation
The Government has declared a state of emergency and has appealed for international assistance. All the coastal districts from Jaffna along the east coast and up to Gampaha on the west coast are affected. The number of casualties is about 4,700 and is bound to rise significantly. District authorities report some 250,000 people displaced.
Needs and Requirements
On 26 December, the Government issued a list of immediate requirements as follows:
- Water and Sanitation equipments (water bottles, water pumps, plastic buckets, 2000 liter-plastic tanks, soaps, detergent powder, water purification tablets)·
- Food (noodles, milk powder, jam, rice, biscuits, pulses, sugar, canned fish, wheat flower)
- Kitchen utensils (plates and cups, etc.)
- Shelter (Tents, plastic rolls, mattresses, mats, blankets, linen)
- Generators.
It was confirmed that relief supplies procured/mobilized in relation to the current emergency situation will be exempted from taxes. A Logistical and Reception Centre has been set up at the airport in Colombo. It is understood that there is no longer a need for Search and Rescue teams, Assessment Teams and doctors.
UN Response
UN staff will be deployed to support the establishment of the Operations Centre at the Ministry of Public Security, Law and Order. UN assistance will also be provided to set up a website at the Operations Room. The website is expected to provide updated information relating to the tidal-wave disaster and relief operations. UNDP released an emergency grant of USD 100,000 and deployed its RDRA to Colombo as well as UNVs for information management and field coordination. WFP deployed emergency teams and is providing food aid for 500,000 people for 2 weeks. In addition, WFP allocated USD 500,000 to purchase food for immediate distribution to the affected population. The UN together with bilateral and NGO partners are organizing assessment missions to the nine most affected districts. OCHA released an emergency grant of USD 50,000 and deployed a UNDAC team. OCHA is organizing an airlift of relief items from its UN Humanitarian Response Depot located in Brindisi with the cost of this airlift (goods and freight costs) entirely covered by the Norwegian Government. The plane will carry approximately 15 metric tons of goods from the OCHA stocks (tents, water containers, jerry cans, squatting plates and related tools/plastic rolls), as well as 5 New Emergency Health Kits (NEHK) of WHO. UNICEF will bring medical supplies for 150,000 for 3 months.
THAILAND
Situation
The Government welcomes international support. The provinces of Ranong, Phang-Nga, Phuket, Krabi, Trang and Satun have been severely affected, with tens of thousands of stranded or displaced persons. More than 1,400 dead have been reported.
Needs and Requirements
The items listed were:
- Helicopter support
- Forensic experts
- Medical supplies (especially for treating skin lesions and flesh wounds), Formalin
- Body bags, portable mortuary/refrigerated containers for temporary mortuary
UN Response
UNDP released an emergency grant of USD 100,000. UNICEF offered its support to the Government for localized needs. WHO will assess the health situation. WFP allocated USD 500,000 to purchase food for immediate distribution to the affected population. OCHA released an emergency grant of USD 50,000 and deployed a UNDAC team.
PLEDGES - CONTRIBUTIONS
OCHA is prepared to serve as a channel for unearmarked cash contributions to be used for immediate relief assistance, in coordination with relevant organizations in the United Nations system. For banking details, please contact the desk officers indicated below. OCHA provides donors with written confirmation and pertinent details concerning the utilization of the funds contributed.
Updates on contributions to this disaster may be found by clicking on Financial Tracking at the top of the page for this disaster on the OCHA Internet Website (http://www.reliefweb.int). Donors are requested to verify this table and inform OCHA Geneva of corrections/additions/values. Donors are encouraged to notify OCHA Geneva of their contributions to this disaster using the OCHA Standardized Contributions Recording Format, available electronically in the above-mentioned Financial Tracking Website.
For coordination purposes, donors are requested to inform OCHA-Geneva Desk Officers, as indicated below, of bilateral relief missions/pledges/contributions and their corresponding value by item.
Together with further information on other ongoing emergencies, this situation report is also available on the OCHA Internet Website at http://www.reliefweb.int.
The map of the region hit can be found at ReliefWeb Map centre - South Asia: Earthquake and Tsunami - Situation map #2
Telephone: +41-22-917 12 34
Fax: +41-22-917 00 23
E-mail: ochagva@un.org
In case of emergency only: Tel. +41-22-917 20 10
Desk Officers:
Mr. Erik Haegglund/Mr. Soichi Nakajima
Direct Tel. +41-22-917 32 99/ 4034
Mr. Rudi Müller/Ms. Caroline Péguet
Direct Tel. 41-22-917 3131 / 1836
Press contact:
(GVA) Ms. Madeleine Moulin-Acevedo direct Tel. +41-22-917 31 60
(N.Y.) Mr. Brian Grogan, direct Tel. +1-212-963 11 43
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