Cyclone Sidr Update

November 16, 2007

 

 

Current Status

 

As of late Friday (November 16) local time, Bangladeshi authorities, the United Nations and media sources were estimating that at least 550 people had been killed by Tropical Cyclone Sidr, which struck the coast of southwest Bangladesh as a category four storm (five is the highest) at 20:30 local time Thursday (November 15). However, damage estimates were preliminary and the death toll is expected to rise in coming days. The Bangladeshi government has not yet requested - nor is it expected to request - any international aid, saying it has the internal capacity and stockpiled supplies to handle the situation at present. The UN and the Bangladeshi government have launched a joint damage assessment. The UN reported Friday that Sidr struck the southwestern coast of Thursday as a category four storm, packing winds between 87 and 103 mph (140 and 165 kph). The Bangladeshi Meteorological Department reported that Sidr had a radius of 311 miles (500 km) with the eye of the storm having winds between 137 and 150 mph (220 and 240 kph). The storm struck in 15 districts from Cox’s Bazar in the country’s extreme southeast to Satkira district on the western border with India. Worst hit were the first-hit areas of Khulna and Barisal Divisions and the largest storm surges, which measured 15 feet (six meters) in height, hit Barguna, Patuakhali and Jhalakathi districts in Barisal division. Communication lines in many areas of the country, including the capital, Dhaka, were disrupted and most had not been restored as of Friday night, further straining the already difficult process of determining casualty and damage estimates, according to UN sources.

 

The Maui-based Pacific Disaster Center (PDC) reported on Thursday that the storm was expected to rapidly weaken as it moved inland in a north-northeast direction Friday, with winds dissipating to a mere 30 knots (35 mph or 55 kph) by late evening. Heavy rains were expected to continue across the country and parts of West Bengal state in neighboring India, which otherwise escaped damage from the storm, according to media reports. The Associated Press reported that by late Friday, operations at the country’s two primary sea ports – Chittagong and Mongla, had resumed.

 

Although an estimated 5 million people live in the most vulnerable areas of coastal Bangladesh, the government estimated that 3.2 million were evacuated before the storm, some 620,000 to official cyclone shelters. More than 40,000 Bangladeshi policemen, soldiers, coastguards and health care workers were deployed along the coast Thursday, according to the BBC. The cyclone began brewing Tuesday (November 13) in the Bay of Bengal, Reuters reported.

 

Impact

 

It is too early to give reliable cumulative estimates of the death toll, but preliminary numbers from local officials ranged from 425 as reported by the Associated Press to 629 as reported by the Deutsche Presse-Agentur. Most estimates were around 550. The Bangladeshi federal government said it had only officially confirmed 233 deaths in 13 districts by mid-Friday, but recognized that the toll was likely far higher. In addition, at least 1,000 fishermen who had been on boats in the Bay of Bengal when the storm hit were missing as of late Friday, according to UN sources. No estimates of damages have been released, but media sources report that many thousands of flimsy straw and mud homes in low-lying areas in Bangladesh’s coastal districts were swept away, which will leave thousands homeless. UN sources reported that communication and power lines were down in many areas of the country.

 

International assistance

 

Although UN sources reported that the Bangladeshi government had not and was not likely to call for international assistance, UNDAC, the UN Country Team in Bangladesh and the UN Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP) have stepped up preparedness, and are ready to respond. Several aid organizations have dispatched reinforcements for their programs already operating in the country. The UN’s World Food Program (WFP) has deployed response teams to southwest Bangladesh to help manage its workers stationed there, who will distribute an estimated 98 tons of ready food from WFP’s emergency hub to feed an estimated 400,000 victims, Xinhua News Agency reported Friday. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that it had local polio surveillance officials in Bangladesh who were ready to cooperate with local health authorities to help in any capacity. As of late Friday local time, a total of 116 medical teams and hundreds of Red Crescent volunteers were working in the affected areas, according to UN sources. CNN reported that non-governmental organization (NGO) World Vision said Thursday it is working with volunteers to help house 20,000 people in the region. ActionAid was reportedly distributing food, nutrition supplements and water purification tables to an estimated 1,000 displaced families. Save the Children was also reported to have responded, although it was not clear in what capacity.

 

The European Commission said it released about US$ 2.2 million (1.5 million pounds) in fast-track aid Friday for those affected by the storm. According to the Bangladeshi Disaster Management Information Center, the Royal Saudi government provided funds for the Center to purchase and distribute 7,060 tents and 3,000 bags of food on Thursday. The Bangladeshi government has stockpiled relief and rescue items, including dry foods, medicines, tents, cooking and lighting materials, the UN reported. The Disaster Management Information Center reported that so far at least 2,168 shelters had been opened and were holding 1.5 million people. The shelters are reportedly equipped with medical teams, medicines and dry foods.

 

Background

 

Storms kill hundreds of people in coastal Bangladesh every year, but occasional severe cyclones kill hundreds of thousands. A cyclone and its subsequent tidal surge in 1991 killed 143,000 and destroyed thousands of homes, and a 1970 storm killed about a half a million people, Reuters reported.

 

International assistance was requested following tropical cyclone Marian (also unofficially known as Cyclone Gorky), which hit the Chittagong district of southeastern Bangladesh on April 29, 1991 with winds of 155 mph, killing more than 138,000 people. The storm caused an estimated $1.5 billion (1991 US dollars) in damage. Crops were destroyed and agricultural fields were flooded with ocean water, contaminating the soil and drinking water. In response, the United States military provided immediate practical assistance in emergency and short-term recovery operations by establishing a Contingency Joint Task Force and launching Operation Sea Angel. These efforts were credited with saving as many as 200,000 lives.

 

Country Profile

 

Bangladesh, with an estimated population of 140 million, is one of the most disaster prone countries in the world due to its geographical location. With its economy heavily dependent on agriculture, the frequency of natural disasters such as floods, cyclones and accompanying storm surges, river-bank erosion, and drought, has hindered economic growth and poverty alleviation, thereby exacerbating the population’s vulnerability to risk.

 

Due to the regularity of major floods and cyclones, which hit the country on an annual basis, Bangladesh has in place a well-established and organized national disaster response structure integrating international aid organizations and on occasion foreign militaries.

 

Bangladesh’s traditional disaster management model focusing on disaster relief and recovery has evolved into a more holistic approach embracing the processes of hazard identification and mitigation, community preparedness, and integrated response efforts. As such, the Ministry of Relief and Rehabilitation was renamed to the Ministry of Food and Disaster Management (MoFDM) in 2003.

 

The Disaster Management Bureau (DMB) was created in 1992 to serve as a technical arm to the MoFDM, overseeing and coordinating all disaster management activities from the national to the grassroots level and maintaining liaison with government agencies, donors, and NGOs to ensure cooperation and coordination.

 

Although Bangladesh continues to strengthen its own capacity to handle wide-scale natural disasters, there will likely be future disasters where international humanitarian assistance is again requested. In Bangladesh and elsewhere, US interests would be well-served by an effective response to disasters. US military expertise and resources could be utilized not only to save lives, but also to possible prevent destabilization. While there has been considerable debate regarding the appropriateness of expanding the role of the US military vis-à-vis non-combat operations, the US military has a long history of humanitarian response and offers considerable assets to the humanitarian community. Coordination, however, between the military and non-governmental humanitarian community continues to be an area where improvement is needed.