Floods add to humanitarian problems

Over 25,000 people displaced by floods in the southern Angolan province of Namibe face increased threats to health as the effects of the heaviest rainy season for many years kick in, WHO said in a statement on Thursday. Although a government and inter-agency assessment mission to the waterlogged province last weekend found no current outbreak of infectious disease, the floods have forced large numbers of people into areas with no safe water sources or sanitation systems. “The lack of safe water, poor sanitation and the amount of standing water ideal for insect breeding is of real concern, particularly in Namibe city where there has been massive destruction of the infrastructure in three barrios. We need to be particularly alert to the possibility of cholera,” said WHO emergency and humanitarian action officer, Nsala Domingos. The population displaced by inundation in Namibe join the 1.2 million who have been forced by conflict to move from their homes throughout the country since 1998. Thousands of homes have been levelled in the city by water damage and living conditions in the areas where people are resettling are precarious, the statement noted. Little shelter material is available, people remain susceptible to the sun during the day and cold at night, and there are no latrines. It is estimated 20 percent of the 25,000 affected are children. The assessment team said the immediate launch of a programme to chlorinate water sources, construct over 4,000 family latrines in the resettlement areas, community mobilisation to dispose of solid waste and distribution of water containers and soap is crucial. Equally important is helping the displaced prevent disease, said Domingos. Health facilities in the area, already of a basic standard, are under pressure and lack essential drugs both for day-to-day illness of the population and to prevent, treat and control cases of epidemic-prone disease. To strengthen epidemic surveillance, local health authorities and WHO ran a rapid training for 15 health workers covering case detection and investigation and effective ways to educating communities about how best to protect themselves. WFP and NGOs are working with the government to provide an initial two months food distribution with special focus on the young and vulnerable. The government and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) are also working with UN agencies and international NGOs to identify resources for shelter, health, nutrition and water that can be diverted to Namibe and activities in the resettlement areas to try and avert the worst. However, a longer than usual rainy season is expected, WHO said, with downpours predicted to continue until the end of May.