Cyclone Sidr Update

November 29, 2007

Note: New content has been inserted in red, italicized, bold font.

Current Status

The Government of Bangladesh’s (GoB’s) Ministry of Food and Disaster Management’s Information Center (DMIC) said Thursday (November 29) that at least 3,268 people have died as a result of Tropical Cyclone Sidr, which struck the southern coast of Bangladesh as a category four (five is the highest) storm at 20:30 local time on November 15 and affected some 8.5 million people (1.9 million families). According to DMIC, 39,773 people were injured and 872 people are still missing. Originating in the Bay of Bengal, Sidr struck the southwestern coast of Bangladesh on November 15 packing winds between 87 and 103 mph (140 and 165 kph). The storm had a radius of 311 miles (500 km) with winds in the eye up to 150 mph (240 kph). Areas along the coast and small offshore islands received the brunt of the storm, which 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, which sustained storm surges measuring 15 feet (six meters) in height. Sidr had dissipated by late November 16. The Bangladeshi Armed Forces Division (AFD) has estimated that Cyclone Sidr cost US$2.31 billion in economic losses, including infrastructure, schools, crops and livestock. (Xinhua, Nov. 26) Sidr was the strongest cyclone to hit Bangladesh since a 1991 storm killed some 143,000 people in the country. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), a UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team remains stood down.

The GoB officially requested international aid on November 20 and so far has reportedly received pledges of more than US$500 million, including up to US$250 million from the World Bank. (AP, Nov. 26) In total, the UN has pledged some US$35 million, of which the UN’s Central Emergency Relief Fund (CERF) has contributed about US$15 million. Among the foreign governments offering the largest donations so far are Saudi Arabia (US$100 million), the US (US$14.5 million), United Kingdom (US$14.4 million), Japan (US$14 million) and the European Commission (US$9.5 million). As of Tuesday (November 27), OCHA reports that the total amount of received contributions and pledges is US$122,108,986. (OCHA, Nov. 25)

The US military continues to assist the AFD in distributing relief goods, including drinking water, to remote locations. The USS Kearsarge is anchored off of Chittagong port and additional US ships are expected in coming days. On Wednesday (November 28), USAID delivered a second shipment of relief supplies to be distributed through Save the Children and World Vision. Between Wednesday and December 3, four USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) members will conduct in-depth assessments and identify gaps in services to see where USAID/Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) can provide further assistance. The team will also assess the five most water-insecure areas. (USAID, Nov. 29) The US military said Thursday that its relief operations in Bangladesh are short-term and as requested by GoB. “The U.S. military are not here to engage in long-term reconstruction,” Reuters quoted Rear Admiral Carol M. Pottenger as saying. (Reuters, Nov. 29)

Although still seeking donations, the GoB said Wednesday that it had ruled out the possibility of a food crisis or famine, saying that with international donations it would have enough food to feed people until the next rice harvest in the spring, and that the European Commission had offered support in case of any food shortfall. (The Daily Star, Nov. 29) The GoB has told donors that it needs at least 500,000 tons of food aid to make up for the food shortage caused by the cyclone and this year’s devastating monsoon flood season. (Reuters, Nov. 27) The shortage is expected to last through March or April 2008, but should improve in May, when the Boro rice harvest begins. Donors are asked to procure food donations from the international market in order to avert a further shortage in the domestic market. (The Daily Star, Nov. 28)

Bangladeshi Naval Chief Vice Admiral Sarwar Zahan Nizam said Thursday that assistance, including food, clothes and drinking water, had reached 95 percent of affected areas. The remaining five percent are expected to receive help soon. Nizam also said that as temperatures drop, blankets and winter clothing are becoming important donation items. (The New Nation, Nov. 29)

The UN’s World Food Program (WFP)announced Thursday that it is launching a US$52 million campaign to provide food aid to 2.2 million people over six months. WFP says it made the decision because it learned in past disasters that short-term food distribution is not enough. “This time, WFP will start longer-term distributions to families with hopes of preventing increases in malnutrition throughout the region,” WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran said. “When parents and their children are malnourished, it is naturally more difficult for families to get back on their feet.” A recent UN rapid assessment found that 2.2 million people in Bangladesh were in need of immediate food assistance. (WFP, Nov. 29)

The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is appealing for US$29.2 million to support women and children affected by the cyclone. UNICEF says half of the people affected are children, about 600,000 of them under five years old. (UNICEF, Nov. 28)

Impact

According to DMIC, the death toll on Thursday was 3,268, Bangladeshi military chief Gen. Moeen Ahmad has said the toll could end up around 5,000, while the Bangladeshi Red Crescent Society has said it could reach 10,000. (CNN, Nov. 21) The DMIC says 872 people are still missing and 39,773 were injured in the storm. (DMIC, Nov. 28)

DMIC says the storm affected a total of 8,545,470 people, including 1,928,265 families, and damaged or destroyed 1,449,157 houses. (DMIC, Nov. 29) Thirty percent of the houses in Barisal and Khulna divisions were destroyed. (USAID, Nov. 28) UNICEF says nearly half of those affected by the disaster were children and about 400,000 of them were under the age of five. (The New Nation, Nov. 21)

The UN’s Rapid Initial Assessment Report, released November 22, said about 4.7 million people were affected in the worst-affected districts of Barisal, Bhola, Patuakhali, Barguna, Jhalakathi, Pirojpur, Bagerhat, Khulna and Satkhira. Of those, an estimated 2.1 million need immediate life-saving food assistance. Food, shelter and cash were found to be the three highest priority areas for assistance. Sanitation, drinking water, medical supplies and communications and transportation restoration are listed as other high-priority needs in descending order. (UN, Nov. 22) According to the DMIC, at least 1,271 people were killed in Barguna district and at least 769 died in Bagerhat. (DMIC, Nov. 29)

More than 14,500 educational institutions were damaged or destroyed by Sidr and the accompanying storm surge. (DMIC, Nov. 29) In Barisal division alone, 483 primary schools were destroyed – 129 of them in Barguna district – and 2,777 were damaged, according to the primary education office in Barisal. (The New Nation, Nov. 28) UNICEF said Friday that an estimated 1 million primary school-age children were affected by Sidr and of them, 600,000 are currently not in class because of the widespread damage to school buildings. Some remaining school buildings have been turned into urgently needed emergency shelters for families who lost their homes. (UNICEF, Nov. 24)

Diarrhea outbreaks remain a major concern. The Bangladeshi Department of Health on Thursday reported that 690 active medical teams with 599 doctors operating in nine districts have seen 2,031 cases of diarrhea (one death), 1,057 respiratory tract infections, 1,773 skin disease cases, 579 eye infections and 3,488 cases of fever/typhoid. (DMIC, Nov. 29) The situation is thought to be manageable, officials say, because they have sufficient supplies of re-hydration saline, intravenous fluids, water purifying tables and antibiotics, but it is vital that families be given storage devices to hold the safe drinking water the AFD is and US military are transporting to them. The Bangladeshi Health Ministry has opened a special desk to monitor storm-caused diarrhea outbreaks. The Ministry has a stock of medicines for diarrhea, but is having trouble distributing them because of the difficulty accessing remote areas. (AP, Nov. 21) Water sources have become contaminated as corpses of cyclone victims, cattle and wild animals float in rivers and canals. Tube wells in most areas have been twisted by the cyclone, as well, according to WHO. (The New Nation, Nov. 22)

A public health report released November 27 by the Bangladeshi Department of Health and the World Health Organization (WHO) says that in the last four days, medical teams have seen 1,087 people for diarrhea - one of whom died, 492 for respiratory infections or pneumonia, 373 for skin diseases, 15 for eye infections and 979 for typhoid/fever. Most of those reports come from Bagerhat, Patuakhali and Barguna districts. (WHO, Nov. 27) A report from the UN’s WHO Bangladesh office released November 23 said 1,189 medical teams had been deployed. (WHO, Nov. 23)

Reuters reports that in many areas, 95 percent of rice crops that are usually harvested in December were badly damaged. Hundreds of shrimp farms have also reportedly washed away. A Bangladeshi Agriculture Ministry assessment says that 1 million metric tons of Amon (Aman) rice production may have been lost, as well as standing crops in an area of more than 2 million acres (800,000 hectares). At least 1,252,344 livestock have been reported dead so far. (DMIC, Nov. 29) About 334 miles (538 km) of road have been heavily damaged and 54,648 miles (87,948 km) partly damaged. Around 1,654 bridges and culverts were damaged. (Daily Star, Nov. 21) The extensive damage to infrastructure and crops will cause widespread problems in the future as it has wiped out the source of so many people’s livelihoods. (The New Nation, Nov. 21) The cyclone caused at least US$4 million in damage to Bangladesh’s important fishing industry and an estimated US$35.7 million to the shrimp industry. (Xinhua, Nov. 23)

The AFD has estimated that Cyclone Sidr cost US$2.31 billion in economic losses, including infrastructure, schools, crops and livestock. (Xinhua, Nov. 26) According to the local Daily Star newspaper, leading national economists from the think-tank, the Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD), estimates that Sidr caused property losses of 65 billion taka (US$929 million) and the estimate is likely to rise as assessments continue. Based on data available from the Ministry of Food and Disaster Management as of Nov. 21, CPD calculated the loss of paddy at 3500 billion taka (about US$500 million), roads and bridges at 11 billion taka (about US$157 million), houses at 7.5 billion taka (about US$107 million), and trees at 5 billion taka (about US$71.4 million). The CPD says that Sidr affected more than 40 million people, with 10 million who live in the coastal zone being directly affected. The world’s largest mangrove forest in the southwestern Sundarbands will take at least 40 years to recover, the CPD said. (Xinhua, Nov. 25) The ADB has said that Bangladesh already suffered US$1.4 billion in losses from this year’s monsoon flood season. (The New Nation, Nov. 28)

Although the storm and the subsequent surge cut off power, phone communication and roadways around the country, including parts of Dhaka, the GoB said November 22 that road communications had been nearly fully restored, power should be restored nationwide by November 30 and land phone communications should be fixed by November 27. There has been no update on progress with communication lines. As of November 28, the Rural Electrification Board had not yet been able to restore power in most of Barisal division, where Sidr damaged 12,427 miles out of 15,534 miles of power line (20,000 of 25,000 km of power lines). (The New Nation, Nov. 28) All affected government offices have been supplied with connected cell phones. (The Daily Star, Nov. 22)

Although an estimated 5 million people live in the most vulnerable areas of coastal Bangladesh, the government estimated that up to 3.2 million were evacuated before the storm, at least 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.

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 nearly 140,000 and destroyed thousands of homes, and a 1970 storm killed about a half a million people. The most deadly recent storm to hit Bangladesh was a tornado that leveled 80 villages and killed 621 people in the country’s north in 1996.

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 geographic 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. Divided into three zones of hills, terraces and a large flood plain, Bangladesh’s geography is uniquely low-lying because its coastal line forms part of the basins of three major rivers, the Padma (Ganges), Brahmaputra and Meghna.

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.

Government Response

The head of Bangladesh’s caretaker government, Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed, visited cyclone-affected areas, including Bagerhat district, on November 27 and said that the GoB would carry out relief and rehabilitation work as long as needed. Ahmed announced that the government had decided to allocate US$13.1 million (900 million taka) to assisting victims of Cyclone Sidr. He also said the government planned to set up multi-purpose cyclone centers to protect the coastal region from disasters and minimize future loss of life and property due to cyclones. (The Daily Star, Nov. 28)

As of Tuesday, the GoB had allocated about US$7.3 million through its Relief and Welfare Fund for Sidr victims. (DMIC, Nov. 27) In addition, it has allocated 10,890 metric tons of rice, distributed 27,000 food bags, 26,700 blankets, about 16,454 tents, 3,348 utensils and 13,000 bundles of corrugated iron sheeting. (DMIC, Nov. 26) The GoB has also allocated a special fund of US$5.2 million (350 million BDT) for long-term housing construction. The Armed Forces Division (AFD) continues to transport relief items to the affected areas by plane, helicopters and boats. (Reuters, Nov. 25) The AFD has established three relief receiving cells at the Directorate of Relief and Rehabilitation, Dhaka Zila Parishad and the Regional Public Administration Center. (DMIC, Nov. 28)

On Thursday, with the help of US aircraft, the AFD flew 11 sorties, delivering 61,456 kg of relief items. The US Army ran six missions and transferred 33,053 kg, in addition. (DMIC, Nov. 29). As of November 28, the AFD had carried 1,277 tons of relief items by 186 sorties.

The Bangladeshi Department of Health has transferred more than two dozen local doctors from less-affected districts to help those in the hardest-hit areas. Under the health department, 18 senior consultants, nine pediatricians, 93 interns, 100 nurses and nine orthopedic surgeons are operating in affected areas. There is one health department medical team consisting of six doctors with different medical specialties (general medicine, surgery, gynecology, pediatrics, anesthesia and orthopedics). A total of 1,193 government doctors are serving patients in the affected areas. (DMIC, Nov. 29)

On Wednesday, the Bangladesh Power Division asked the Finance Ministry for about US$1 million (70 million taka) to repair damage to power installations around the country. (Xinhua, Nov. 28) The Rural Electrification Board says it has yet to restore power to nine districts in Barisal division, where 12,427 miles out of 15,534 miles of power line (20,000 of 25,000 km of power lines) were damaged. (The New Nation, Nov. 28)

The Disaster Emergency Response (DER), composed of UN, NGO and GoB officials, has established six relief clusters and appointed agencies to lead each. For further information regarding clusters, please see LCG Disaster Emergency Response – Cyclone Updates Website: www.lcgbangladesh.org/derweb/cyclone_updates.php

The GoB called for international aid on November 20 and so far has received pledges of up to US$500 million in aid from foreign governments, UN agencies and NGOs. (IRIN, Nov. 26) Although still seeking donations, the GoB said Wednesday that it had ruled out the possibility of a food crisis or famine, saying that with international donations it would have enough food to feed people until the next rice harvest in the spring, and that the European Commission had offered support in case of any food shortfall. (The Daily Star, Nov. 29) The GoB has told donors that it needs at least 500,000 metric tons of food grains in assistance to make up for a cyclone-caused national food shortage that is expected to last through April 2008. Donors are asked to procure food donations from the international market in order to avert a further shortage in the domestic market. (The Daily Star, Nov. 28) Food Ministry sources say the government needs at least 1.1 million MT of food in total for its relief programs over the next several months. The GoB currently has a food grain stock of 737,000 MT, of which 200,000 are being immediately released to cyclone-affected areas. (The Daily Star, Nov. 28)

The GoB will distribute access cards for Vulnerable Group Feeding programs to 2.5 million families beginning the first of December. Each cardholder will have access to 33 lbs. (15 kg) of rice per month for at least four months. (IRIN, AP, Nov. 22, 25) So far, the GoB has allocated 150,233 metric tons of food items and US$227,795 (15,596,331 taka) for the VGF. (DMIC, Nov. 26)

Among the priorities identified by the GoB, UN and NGOs for the next four weeks are search and rescue, burial services, updating the death toll, providing first aid, restoring emergency services, power and communications, repairing drinking water sources and supplying emergency relief. From December 2007 to March 2008, the priorities will include home-building assistance, continued food support and preventing epidemics. In the months after March 2008, the focus will be on rehabilitation of the Sundarban forest, reconstruction, building cyclone shelters, improving the early warning system and expanding the disaster information network. (DMIC, Nov. 22)

The MoFDM has opened a Cyclone SIDR Coordination Cell to be operated out of worst-affected Barisal district. The AFD, which was coordinating the relief effort from Dhaka, will now operate out of Barisal. (DMIC, Nov. 22) The Navy has established two “focal points” in Barisal and Bongla districts for more effective transportation of relief materials to remote areas. (The Daily Star, Nov. 22)

The GoB has said it will create a Finance Ministry soft-credit fund of US$19 million (1.3 billion taka) to make loans to small traders, fishermen and farmers affected by Sidr. (The Daily Star, Nov. 26)

The Bangladesh Army on November 20 said that each family of those killed in the cyclone would receive about US$143 (10,000 taka) and funeral assistance from the government. (Xinhua, Nov. 20) The Bangladeshi Navy and Coast Guard have begun work on rebuilding homes as they continue to help civil officials remove trees from blocked roads. (Reuters, Nov. 20)

National Response

The Bangladeshi Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) has more than 2,500 staff engaged in relief efforts, which include the distribution of 160,884 food packages of lentils, energy biscuits, matches, 200 taka (US$2.92) and 10kg of rice to families accounting for 400,000 cyclone victims in 11 districts. (DMIC, Nov. 29) BRAC is also treating contaminated ponds and fixing about four damaged pond sand filters a day. (BRAC, Nov. 22) BRAC has 13 medical teams working in affected regions, including 116 total team members who had served 29,223 people as of November 25. (DMIC, Nov. 27)

The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BRCS) has about 42,000 volunteers working in coastal areas and with assistance from the IFRC has deployed four assessment teams and 12 mobile health teams, provided family packs of non-food items and 55 MT of food relief to 64,000 families in 15 affected districts, and distributed 42,000 water purification tables in four districts. (OCHA, Nov. 25) According to DMIC, BRCS has so far distributed US$840,000 worth of aid, including 10,200 blankets and at least US$95,587 (6.4 million Bangladesh taka). BRCS has appealed for about US$5.7 million in international assistance. (Xinhua, Nov. 26) IFRC has allocated CHF 250,000 (US$223,000) from the Federation’s Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF).

Shushilan has distributed kits to 25,000 families in two districts. It has also donated molasses and rice. (WFP, Nov. 27)

Proshika has a medical team and livestock recovery workers in nine districts working through hubs in Jhalokati and Tashika and has installed six water treatment plants. It has prepared a proposal for work in the areas of health, water and sanitation, food, shelter and livestock recovery. (WFP, Nov. 27) By November 29, Proshika has secured 3,500 MT of warehouse capacity in Jamalpur and Magura, but was having trouble obtaining local transportation for its deliveries. (WFP, Nov. 29)

International Response

According to the UN, GoB has so far received offers of more than US$500 million in international emergency aid. (IRIN, Nov. 26) According to the UNOCHA Financial Tracking System, the total amount of received contributions and confirmed pledges as of Saturday was some US$122 million. (UNOCHA, Nov. 24)

The GoB said Tuesday that it is seeking five lakh (500,000) metric tons (MT) of rice from the international community as assistance to keep a minimum food stock of one million tons. The GoB is requesting the rice be purchased outside Bangladesh so that it does not affect the local market. So far, the WFP has promised 71,000 MT, India 50,000 (MT) and the US promised 25,000 MT. (Daily Star, Nov. 28)

United Nations

The United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator released a second round of Central Emergency Relief Fund (CERF) allocations in the amount of US$5.92 million for activities in heath, telecommunications, emergency shelter and non-food items on November 21, bringing the total to US$14.7 million. (OCHA, Nov. 21)

OCHA says the UN Country Team in conjunction with the GoB has been managing the six clusters that have been formed in support of the overall response and recovery plan: 1) Food (led by the WFP), 2) Water and sanitation (UNICEF), 3) Health (WHO), 4) Shelter (IFRC), 5) Logistics (WFP), and 6) Early Recovery (UNDP). (OCHA, Nov. 23)

According to the UN Rapid Initial Assessment Report, food, shelter and cash are identified as the three highest priority areas for assistance. Sanitation and drinking water assistance is also badly needed. Restoration of communications and electricity are high priorities. Communications have been restored in most areas, however, the UN says that the same is not true of electricity. Transportation is also in need of support. (UN, Nov. 22)

According to the DMIC, the UN published a Rapid Initial Assessment report on the nine worst-affected districts. The report is available at: http://www.cdmp.org.bd/publications/Cyclone_Sidr_UN_Rapid_Initial_Assessment_Report.pdf (DMIC, Nov. 22)

According to UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), a UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team has been stood down as the Government of Bangladesh (GoB) and UN Country teams and agencies are able to manage the disaster. (OCHA, Nov. 16)

The UN Development Program (UNDP) has pledged US$7 million in relief grants to Bangladesh. (The Daily Star, Nov. 19) UNDP plans to provide 5 kilograms of flattened rice and 1 kilogram of molasses per family for some 70,000 families in several districts. UNDP also plans to provide 240,000 packets of water purification powder or one week supply for each family through Bangladesh National Scouts (BNS) in affected areas. (DMIC, Nov-18)

UNICEF is appealing for US$29.2 million to support the needs of women and children. UNICEF says approximately half of the affected people are children and some 600,000 are under five years of age. UNICEF also says some 2.8 million will require long-term support. The group also says that some 523,000 are in need of medicine and medical services. (UNICEF, Nov. 29) UNICEF will support the national response in the areas of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), nutrition, education, child protection, education and the provision of non-food items. UNICEF is taking the lead in the WASH cluster. Beyond clusters it is facilitating sectoral coordination among the development partners and the NGOs in four other areas: nutrition, education, protection - together with Save the Children - and emergency telecommunications. UNICEF recognizes the need for continuing support to the affected population for the next five to six months until the harvests begin in the summer. (UNICEF, Nov. 28) UNICEF and Save the Children are setting up “safe places” for child protection, which will also be used as temporary learning centers with the provision of School-in-a-Box Kits (UNOCHA, Nov. 24), as some 600,000 school-age children are currently not in class due to cyclone damage. (UNICEF, Nov. 23) UNICEF has set up dozens of camps to care for children orphaned by the cyclone. (AFP, Nov. 22) A stock of 7.3 million WPT (Water Purification Tablets) provided by UNICEF during the recent floods are available for immediate distribution (2 million with DPHE and 5.3 million at the Central Medical Store Depot (CMSD) of the Ministry of Health). UNICEF is supplying 92 metric tons of BP5 biscuits to aid 15,400 children and 11,600 pregnant and lactating women in six of the worst-affected districts. (UNICEF, Nov. 23) UNICEF will work with WFP in distributing the biscuits and is procuring blended food for children in affected districts for a period of three months. (UNOCHA, Nov. 24)

The UN Disaster Management Team (UNDMT) met November 16 to assess the situation and strategize a joint UN response.

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said that it is sending a mission of experts to focus primarily on the Sundarbans mangrove forest, which was put on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. According to the UN, the 140,000-hectare forest is home to many endangered species, including the Bengal tiger. (UNNS, Nov. 27)

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will start a food and livelihoods assessment on December 3 to determine the impact on agricultural production, fisheries and forestry. (USAID, Nov. 26) FAO has established an emergency coordination and rehabilitation unit. (AHN, Nov. 24). The cyclone caused at least US$4 million in damage to Bangladesh’s important fishing industry and an estimated US$35.7 million to the shrimp industry. (Xinhua, Nov. 23) FAO is assisting 47,000 households with seeds and other agricultural inputs such as fishing nets and intents to support more than 100,000 families in livelihood rehabilitation. (OCHA, Nov. 23) The FAO said 92,000 hectares of crops had been ruined, 500,000 hectares partly damaged and around 350,000 livestock lost. (AFP, Nov. 26)

The UN Environment Program (UNEP) and OCHA have published a joint Environmental Risk Identification report for Bangladesh available on Relief Web (www.reliefweb.int). (UNEP, Nov. 16)

The UN’s World Food Program (WFP) on November 29 announced a plan to provide emergency food aid to 2.2 million people over the next six months. The operation will follow the work of the UN Rapid Assessment Mission, which found 4.7 million people were affected in the worst districts, of which 2.2 million are in need of immediate food assistance. The operation will cost some US$52 million. (WFP, Nov. 29) WFP says its emergency response will run until Dec. 1. After this a 6-month Emergency Operation (EMOP) is planned with some 20,000 MT of commodities a month. WFP has an office in Jessore and will open a sub-office in Barisal and Bagerhat and warehouses in Barisal and Khulna. (WFP, Nov. 26) WFP chaired the first meeting of the interagency logistics response team (LRT). USAID says the LRT is functioning as the logistics cluster as a full cluster has not yet been activated at present. Partners report no constraints or significant gaps at this time. (USAID, Nov. 27) WFP is distributing 208 metric tons of high-energy biscuits with the Bangladeshi Air Force, which is being implemented by Save the Children. WFP has begun distribution of 750 metric tons of rice to 25,000 families in the five worst-affected districts of Barguna, Patuakhali, Pirojpur, Barisal and Bagerhat. (WFP, Nov 23) UN partners are distributing dry food – flattened rice and molasses – to 70,000 affected families. (UNOCHA, Nov. 24) A WFP assessment found that US$30 million would be required for food for the next three months. (IHT, Nov. 22)

The World Health Organization (WHO) deployed six coordinators and a consultant to facilitate district-level health coordination and assist local health officials in collecting public health information as part of disease surveillance. (WHO, Nov. 28) WHO has provided medical support of US$3.24 million, including US$74,000 in medicine to replenish buffer stock. WHO deployed two Emergency Health Advisors to the affected areas to assist in monitoring disease outbreak in collaboration with GoB. (UNOCHA, Nov. 24)

NGOs / IOs:

ActionAid is launching a 1 million-Euro (US$1.5 million) appeal. ActionAid is working closely with partner organizations on the ground to distribute essential relief items to over 30,000 people. Preparations are also underway for a second round of relief. (AA, Nov. 22)

Action Contre La Faim (ACF)