(Updated)
New York/Dhaka, May 28, 2009 - BRAC staff have been working around the clock since before Cyclone Aila hit the southwestern coast of Bangladesh on Monday to evacuate people and immediately launched relief efforts. The storm, with tidal waves caused by winds of up to 100 kilometers per hour, has rendered hundreds of thousands homeless, and many are still missing.
Over 10,800 people took shelter in 15 BRAC cyclone shelters constructed after Cyclone Sidr struck this same region in 2007. BRAC staff are providing dry food rations, consisting of chira (dried and flattened rice), molasses and bottled water to the most distressed; oral rehydration solution (ORS) packets to people suffering from diarrhea, along with water purification tablets, although most water sources are contaminated with saline water and will still be undrinkable. As many of the cyclone-hit areas were also affected by Cyclone Sidr, BRAC was already conducting rehabilitation work in the region, and quickly shifted into emergency relief mode.
Though wind speed was much lower than during Cyclone Sidr, Aila occurred during high tide which made the impact more significant. Extensive damage has occurred as mud embankments have been breached, leaving several areas under water. Dr. Babar Kabir, Director of BRAC's Disaster, Environment and Climate Change Program (DECC) who is overseeing the relief effort, is assessing the damage and relief needs in Bagerhat, Khulna and Satkhira.
“Clean water will become a public health concern as the local ponds (which are the only source of drinking water) have become inundated with saline (salt) water,” says Kabir. “As BRAC begins to see the extent and severity of the damage, it is clear that a greater response is urgently needed.”
BRAC is assessing the number of people vulnerable to exposure, hunger and disease, and will scale up its efforts to provide food, basic relief items, medical care, and improved access to clean water. Crop damage can only be assessed after the water has fully receded, but it is clear that the storm has wreaked extensive damage to livelihoods in the region, wiping out significant portions of household assets. BRAC is using 10 million Taka (about USD 150,000) of its own funds to provide initial relief and will seek funding once it completes its needs assessment.
BRAC estimates that it will reach 40,000 families who will desperately need food aid over the coming weeks. A typical food aid package will consist of enough rice, lentils, cooking oil, potatoes and salt for a cyclone-affected family to eat for a week. The food aid will be disbursed in installments throughout the week so the families won't have to worry about storage and food going bad.
Two days after the cyclone, water is receding in some areas but returning families have lost their assets and have no way to earn money to buy food and other necessities. It may take as long as one week for economic activities in these areas to resume. Immediate food and water relief is therefore critical.
BRAC is working throughout the affected region, and has a national network of programs and more than 100,000 staff throughout Bangladesh. BRAC has provided emergency aid and rehabilitation in Bangladesh since its inception and carried out large-scale relief and rehabilitation activities there for cyclone and flood victims in 1987, 1988, 1991, 1998, 2000, 2004 and 2007. BRAC was one of the first on the ground to provide relief in the wake of Cyclone Sidr and mobilized USD 33.8 million for its initial relief and longer-term rehabilitation efforts. BRAC, the largest non-profit in the developing world, was launched in Bangladesh in 1972 and today reaches more than 110 million people in Africa and Asia with its holistic approach to addressing poverty by providing micro-loans, self-employment opportunities, health services, education and legal and human rights education.
For media inquiries please contact:
US
Alyssa Herman
Vice President for Communications, Marketing and Development
www.bracusa.org
E-mail: alyssa@bracusa.org
Phone: +1 212 808 5615
|
|
