OCHA - FLOODING SITREP #3

HAITI - FLOODING - SITUATION REPORT NO. 3 - 10 JUNE 2011
(www.unocha.org)

The mission of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is to mobilize and coordinate effective and principled humanitarian action in partnership with national and international actors. Celebrating 20 years of coordinated humanitarian action

This report is produced by OCHA in collaboration with humanitarian partners. It was issued by OCHA Haiti field office. It covers the period from 9 to 10 June. This is the last situation report covering the flooding of the 6 to 7 June.

I. HIGHLIGHTS/KEY PRIORITIES

• The orange alert has been lifted on 9 June by the government.

• According to revised estimates, 28 people died, 6 were injured and 6 are reported missing.

• Poor hygiene condition in affected areas increases risks of cholera outbreaks.

II. SITUATION OVERVIEW

The orange alert has been lifted on 9 June by the Direction de la protection civile (DPC). River water levels have started to recede in affected areas of the Nippes, West, Artibonite and Centre departments.

According to final estimates by the DPC, 28 people died, 6 have been injured and 6 are still reported missing. The West department, including Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, has the highest fatality rate with 22 deaths.

III. HUMANITARIAN NEEDS AND RESPONSE

CAMP COORDINATION/MANAGEMENT (CCCM)

Needs: A total 213 vulnerable sites were assessed by telephone between 6 and 7 June. Needs assessment teams, deployed by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in 91 of those camps, reported that ten were severely flooded. Of those 91 camps, 29 are large sites hosting more than 1,000 households.

Response: The Direction de la protection civile (DPC) and CCCM partners are currently providing assistance to 10 sites hosting internally displaced people (IDPs) in earthquake affected communes.

Mitigation activities are ongoing in six of the large camps hosting more than 1,000 families and around 200 tents will be distributed. Assistance is being provided to help IDPs drain the water and remove the mud and rubbles in and around camps.

Gaps & Constraints: Water canals near camps are blocked and need to be cleared to prevent further flooding and landslide. Additional tents and tarps are urgently needed, stresses the CCCM Cluster.

WATER SANITATION HYGIENE (WASH)

Needs: Latrines and showers are damaged, mostly in camps with no WASH actors, reports the Cluster.

Dispersion of fecal matters is reported in some camps. A deterioration of residual chlorine levels has also been observed in water distribution systems.

Response: WASH partners are conducting drainage activities in camps although water levels have started to recede. Distribution of WASH items is ongoing. The Direction de l’eau et de l’assainissement (DINEPA) is scaling up its monitoring of residual chlorine water levels of community water distribution stations.

Gaps & Constraints: Desludging and repair of latrines are urgent. Additional Aquatabs and jerricans are needed to prevent further cholera outbreaks. More rakes, wheel barrows and shovels are needed to clear mud and stagnating water. Due to a lack of latrines and showers in Grande Saline in the Artibonite department, affected population use water canals.

HEALTH/NUTRITION

Needs: The increase in the number of new cholera cases seems to stabilize in Port-au-Prince with 1,938 occupied beds on 9 June compared to 1,885 beds on 8 June and 1, 773 on 7 June. Outbreaks of cholera continue to be reported, particularly in the communes of Peredo and Saint Michel in the South department, and in Mapu, Bayonnais, and Dessaline, in the Artibonite department, which was totally flooded when the Artibonite River over flown its banks. Cholera numbers have been on a stable high, and went up over the past two days in Léogâne/Gressier of the Palmes region.

Response: In cooperation with the CCCM Cluster, PAHO has set up a surveillance alert system in camps.

An important awareness campaign, organized by the Direction sanitaire de l’Ouest (DSO), in partnership with health partners, will be launched in Carrefour and Martissant which were among hard hit areas of Port-au-Prince metropolitan area.

Additional medical supplies (catheters, doxicicline, érythromycine and sirop) have
been made available.

Gaps & Constraints: The CTC of Baradères in the Nippes department has run out of funds. As a result, the 27 staff members have not been paid since February and are threatening to go on strike. Under-reporting of cholera cases in the South department remains an issue. Drouin UTC in Grande Saline commune has been
cut off by flooding and can only provide medical assistance to cholera patients in the immediate vicinity.

EMERGENCY SHELTER

Needs: According to a joint assessment mission between departmental, local authorities and humanitarian partners in the commune of Grande Saline in the Artibonite department, 4,629 people have been affected (16.5 per cent of the population).

Response: La Tapie Shelter in Grande Saline is hosting 135 people while 3,675 others have moved with host families.

Gaps & Constraints: The provision of assistance to affected population and host families is needed.

EDUCATION

Needs: Some schools in Baradères have been flooded, according to the Education Director of the Nippes Department. In Artibonite, one school is hosting 200 people affected by the flooded River Artibonite. In the West department, three schools have been confirmed to be flooded in Port-au-Prince. The five unused
classrooms in Thomazeau affected by rising water levels of Lake Azuei continue to be occupied as one of three collective centers.

Response: Cleaning of Port-au-Prince affected schools was done immediately after the rain and no disruption of classes have been observed.

FOOD SECURITY/AGRICULTURE

Needs: the flooding of agricultural fields has resulted in the loss of manioc, sweet potatoes, rice, and tomato crops in Grande Saline, according to a joint assessment between departmental, local authorities and humanitarian partners.

Response: provision of agricultural tools and seeds, distribution of food and kitchen kits are scheduled to take place in the coming days.

LOGISTICS

Response: An integrated mission with departmental and local authorities, the Direction de l’eau et de l’assainissement (DINEPA), the National Haitian police (PNH), MINUSTAH and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) was conducted on 9 June in Baradères in the Nippes department in response to heavy flooding. Two areas suitable for helicopter landing were identified for an emergency response should the city be cut off by flooding in the future. Two trucks were deployed on 9 June by the Ministère des travaux publics, transport et communication (MTPCT) and the Direction sanitaire des Nippes (DSNI) to deliver food rations on 9 June in the commune of Baradères. The Global Mapping of
Emergency Stockpiles, a collaborative initiative between the Global Logistics Cluster Support Cell and OCHA, provides a pre-selection of what is accessible in the country. It is accessible at: http://www.humanitarianinfo.org/stockmap.

VI. CONTACT

Head of OCHA Haiti: Philippe Verstraeten; Email: verstraeten@un.org

Spokesperson/ Public Information Officer: Emmanuelle Schneider;
Email : schneider1@un.org

Reporting Officer: Abdourahmane Diallo; Email: diallo57@un.org/ocha.haiti@gmail.com ,

For more information on the response in Haiti, please visit:
http://haiti.humanitarianresponse.info

United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, (OCHA), Boulevard Toussaint Louverture
et Clercine 18, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.