Brahmanbaria District Joint Need Assessment Report, 2013

Home , Akhaura Upazila, Ashuganj, Bijoynagar Upazila, Brahmanbaria, Brahmanbaria District, Upazila

Tornado in North Eastern Bangladesh: Brahmanbaria District Joint Need Assessment Report, 2013

Assessment conducted jointly by Shelter Cluster WASH Cluster Early Recovery Cluster

Table of Contents

Executive Summary...... 6 Recommended Interventions...... 8 Background...... 10 Assessment Methodology...... 12 Key Findings...... 14 Priorities identified by Upazila Officials...... 18 Detailed Assessment Findings...... 20 Shelter...... 20 Water Sanitation & Hygiene...... 20 Livelihoods...... 21 Education...... 24 Completed & Planned Interventions...... 26 Response Challenges...... 29 Annex Brahmanbaria District DMC meeting Minutes Report on KII WASH Report on KII Education and Children Report on KII Agriculture and Livelihood Key Informant Interview Format GoB Key Informant Interview Format Agriculture

Tables & Pictures

Table 1 Affected Upazila and Unions of Brahmanbaria District Table 2 Summary of Affected Population and Shelters Table 3 Report Submission & Responsibility Table 4 Priorities identified by Upazila Officials Table 5 Damaged water supply system Table 6 Damaged sanitary system Table 7 Damage in Agriculture Table 8 Status of production during disaster per Upazila Table 9 Seasonal Calendar Table 10 Damage Information on Livestock Table 11 Summary of Assistance by Government, BDRCS, NGOs and other agencies Table 12 A brief summary of the major Shelter responses Table 13 Responses intervened in terms of water supply

Picture 1 Tornado Affected Upazilas of Brahmanbaria Picture 2 KII with Deputy Commissioner, Brahmanbaria Picture 3 KII with Executive Engineer, DPHE, Brahmanbaria Picture 4 KII with Vice Chairman and Secretary, BDRCS Brahmanbaria Unit Picture 5 KII with District Agriculture Officer, Brahmanbaria Picture 6 KII with District Education Officer & District Child Affairs officer of Brahmanbaria Picture 7 Affected family taking temporary shelter in tents, Basudeb Union, Brahmanbaria Picture 8 Debris in the rice fields, Brahmanbaria

Acknowledgements

On behalf of the WASH, Shelter, and Early Recovery Cluster involved in this assessment, we would like to acknowledge the valuable support received from the Deputy Commissioner (DC), Brahmanbaria for organizing a Disaster Management Committee (DMC) meeting at the district. This support has significantly contributed to the quality of this assessment.

Special gratitude to Deputy Director from DAE, Ex.En–DPHE, District Primary Education officer and other DMC members for their cooperation in support of the assessment. Special thanks to Upazila Nirbahi Officers (UNOs) for their support and Project Implementation Officers (PIOs) for contribution to the assessment and managing secondary information. Thanks to Bangladesh Red crescent Society (BDRCS) Brahmanbaria Unit for contribution in the assessment.

Heartfelt appreciation to the assessment team conducting Key Informant Interview (KII) in Brahmanbaria and participanting agencies: Department of Disaster Management (DDM), UNDP/CDMP, UNDP/ERF, Habitat for Humanity, Save the Children and IFRC.

Acronyms & Abbreviation

BDRCS Bangladesh Red Crescent Society CDMP Comprehensive Disaster Management Program CHP Community Hygiene Promoter CGI Corrugated Galvanised Iron CI Corrugated Iron CRA Community Risk Assessment DAE Department of Agricultural Extension DC Deputy Commissioner DDM Department of Disaster Management DLS Department of Livestock DMC Disaster Management Committee DMRD Disaster Management and Relief Division DPHE Department of Public Health and Engineering DRR Directorate of Relief and Rehabilitation DRRO District Relief and Rehabilitation Officer GI Galvanised Iron GoB Government of Bangladesh HCTT Humanitarian Coordination Task Team IFRC International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies INGO International Non-Government Organization KII Key Informant Interview NGO Non-Government Organization PIO Project Implementation Officer PVC Polyvinyl chloride RCC Reinforced Cement Concrete RRAP Risk Reduction Action Plan UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNICEF United Nations Children Fund UNO Upazila Nirbahi Officer UP Union Parishad USO Upazila Statistical Officer WATSAN Water and Sanitation WASH Water, Sanitation and Hygiene WFP World Food Programme

Executive Summary

A tornado ripped through more than a dozen rural villages in north-eastern Bangladesh in the district of Brahmanbaria on late Friday, 22 March 2013, killing at least 36 people, as per the government D- forms, and battering eight unions of three Upazilas (sub district) of Sadar, Akhaura and Bijoynagar. Around 431 people have been severely injured in the disaster of which 72 are hospitalized and a total of 1731 families affected (of which 1283 and 448 families have been severely and partially affected). Among the eight affected unions, Machihata and Basudeb of Sadar Upazila and union of Uttar Akhaura of Akhaura Upazila have been severely affected. Unions of Ramrail and Sultanpur of Sadar Upazila, Pourashava of Akhaura Upazila and unions of Dakshin Shingerbil and Pattan of Bijoynagar Upazila have been moderately affected by the disaster. The disaster has damaged and destroyed houses and impacted the residences’ water and sanitation facilities, and livelihoods.

In connection to the HCTT decision on 24 March 2013, the shelter and WASH cluster initiated a joint assessment on the recent disaster in Brahmanbaria district, through conducting Key Informant Interview (KII). The assessment was also joined by the Early Recovery / Food Security Cluster to understand the context of livelihood at present and priorities in this regard. Following the initiative, a joint team was formed where members from CDMP-UNDP, Disaster Management Department, Save the Children, UNDP/ERF, Habitat for Humanity and IFRC volunteered to take part in Key Informant Interview (KII) with various stakeholders from 03/04/2013-04/04/2013 at the District, Upazila and Union level in Brahmanbaria district.

The KII was meant to understand the current situation, priorities of the affected population and gaps in assistance by various stakeholders. The KII focussed on aspects including shelter, WASH and Early Recovery which had been conducted based on the formats provided: one, covering background and technical aspects on shelter, WASH and Early Recovery and a second format on agriculture. Available secondary information, such as D-forms at the Upazila level, had also been collected for reference. A Disaster Management Committee (DMC) meeting was held on 3rd March 2013 at Deputy Commissioner (DC) office which had been facilitated by CRA Specialist, CDMP-UNDP, in order to have a discussion on the objective of the KII to be conducted, to have an overview of the disaster situation and priorities in the aspects of shelter, WASH and Livelihood and the gaps in terms of assistance to the affected people. The assessment team had later divided itself to conduct KII on the technical aspects, Shelter & WASH, Agriculture and Livestock and Education based on his/her expertise.

This report presents the findings of KII under various aspects including shelter, WASH and Early Recovery.

According to the government statistics, 1778 houses have been completely destroyed and 744 houses have been partially damaged. While most of the affected population has been living without proper shelter since the storm, most are under tents and others have constructed temporary makeshift dwellings on the site of their original houses.

As per the government D form, a total of 70 hectares (173 acres) of agricultural land has been completely destroyed and 450 hectares (1,112 acres) of agricultural land partially affected. In average, a total of 295 hectares of Boro rice and 10 hectares of vegetable crops are completely damaged. The tornado impacted the low lying areas of Brahmanbaria district damaging mostly the mono crop of Boro rice production. The storm carried much of the debris into the paddy fields, as a result, affecting the crops. Although no negative coping strategy is adopted by affected people at present, the community is more inclined to external support that may delay the resume of original livelihood.

A total number of 371 tube-wells have been damaged and total 595 latrines have been damaged, (of which 523 have been completely destroyed and 72 have been partially affected) in the twister. In most cases, while the hand pump has been damaged, platforms are still useable. The communities are sharing existing water points in slightly distant locations. With damaged latrine, communities share existing latrine or open defecate which is likely to lead to an epidemic if adequate latrine support is not covered before monsoon begins.

As per the D form, around ten (10) educational institutions have been damaged. While educational institutions have been functioning, the infrastructure needs to be strengthened/ renovated to reduce its vulnerability to collapsing.

In terms of recommendation, shelter reconstruction/ repairing as means of transitional or permanent structure is a priority at the moment along with safe sanitation to protect affected communities from expected rain while monsoon nears. The District DMC also emphasized the need for rehabilitation support with the principle of “Build Back Better” and “Do no harm” guiding principles and hence identification of the families requiring house rehabilitation support is necessary. In regards to WASH, repairing of existing tube-wells should be considered in the immediate intervention and identification of gaps in terms of sanitary latrine assistance is important in order to cover greater fraction of affected population with latrine support to prevent potential spread of water borne disease while monsoon is close. In terms of livelihood restoration initiatives, input support (such as seeds, seedlings, saplings and production inputs) could be provided to poor, marginal, small and medium farmers for home based vegetable and agro-forestry production. Conditional cash grant could be provided to poor and marginal families to restock cattle, goat/sheep and poultry. Also conditional cash grant (very selective) for marginal and small and medium families for cattle and poultry feed procuring and shed rebuilding/repairing works can be considered. In case of education, renovation of damaged school buildings, support to children in terms essential education materials, most of which had been lost in the storm, and psychosocial support to children are considered a priority at this stage.

Immediately after the disaster, assistance, particularly emergency shelter and non food items, cash grants and food support, had been supported by government, I/NGOs, BDRCS, Corporate and other organizations to affected population. A total cash grant of BDT 25, 77,500.00 and 261.580 MT rice had been provided to affected population by the government and BDT 74, 46,000.00 provided for house building support. The Department of Public Health and Engineering (DPHE) along with UNICEF has repaired 383 tube-wells and installed 19 new tube-wells. Also 300 sets (3 rings and 1 slab) of RCC rings and slabs had been distributed. In terms of livelihood support, the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) are in a process to support 520 farmers for Aus rice cultivation, which will start from end April. For education and children support, the Education department of government had distributed 9, 00000.00 (nine lac) taka to three damaged primary schools of Sadar Upazila in Brahmanbaria (BDT three hundred thousand per school). BDRCS Brahmanbaria unit assisted 600 affected families with family Kit, triple & water container while a mobile medical team was on the ground for three consecutive days. The WFP had provided 12.33 MTs of fortified biscuits. Apart from these, others such as Dutch Bangla Bank and Trust Bank, provided 700 Bundle of CI sheet and BDT 500,000 cash grants respectively.

The district of Brahmanbaria lies on the river basin and is exposed to floods during extreme events. Since the monsoon is approaching, affected population may encounter rains and floods, from early July to September, and likely to suffer most. Coordinated response is emphasized to avoid possible chances of duplication in assisting the affected population. At this stage, families rebuilding shelter had not been noticed and assumed they are engaged in other priorities including receiving relief assistance from various stakeholders. While national election is near and local leaders are negotiating with government and development agencies for more relief and rehabilitation, further response in Brahmanbaria could be critical in terms of targeting appropriate beneficiaries and management.

Recommended Interventions

Shelter Immediate 1. While affected population is currently taking protection in emergency shelters and as monsoon nears, construction of transitional and permanent shelters is a priority at the moment. The District DMC also emphasized, in the DMC meeting on 03/04/2013, the need for rehabilitation support with the principle of “Build Back Better” and “Do no harm” guiding principles and hence identification of the families requiring house rehabilitation support is necessary. 2. The DMC meeting, held in Brahmanbaria, stressed on the importance of conducting a physical survey by assessment team in the affected regions to have better understanding on the community needs and priorities. 3. Reconstruction/ Repairing of damaged houses with safer sanitation system were suggested, in the DMC meeting, to protect the affected population before the coming monsoon 4. According to local representatives, construction/repairing of damaged houses by providing masonry/RCC framed structure (instead of CGI/bamboo) is suggested 5. Hazard specific/ resilient housing construction principles may be adopted during shelter reconstruction guided by 3 B(Build Back Better) and Do no harm principles

Medium-Long Term 1. Resilient housing structure to similar hazards should be researched to prevent such casualty and increase resilience of communities to disasters

WASH Immediate 1. Along with the new installation of tube-wells, repairing of existing tube-wells should be considered in the immediate intervention. 2. Additionally, the DPHE stock may be enriched to increase its capacity in the face of emergency. 3. Identification of gaps in terms of sanitary latrine assistance is important in order to cover greater fraction of affected population with latrine support to prevent possible spread of water borne disease while monsoon nears.

Medium-Long Term 1. Capacity building of DPHE officials involved in responding to emergency situations.

Livelihood Immediate 1. Support for home base vegetable and agro-forestry production to poor, marginal, small and medium farmers like seeds, seedlings, saplings and production inputs. 2. Conditional cash grant for poor and marginal families to restock cattle, goat/sheep and poultry. Priority should be given to agricultural landless small households and women-headed families. 3. Conditional cash grant (very selective) for cattle and poultry feed and shed rebuilding/repair to marginal, small and medium families 4. According to BDRCS Brahmanbaria unit, support to affected fishermen families should be considered, most of who are the minorities, and have lost fishing tools and equipments

Medium-Long Term 1. Assistance (seed, fertilizer, management costs) to farmers (poor, marginal, small and medium) for next Aman rice production, in case of highland areas within the affected region, which will begin from end July.

2. Farm-based families, majority of who have lost the key crop cultivation of the year, which is Boro rice production, require mid and long term alternative support to manage livelihood, for at least 6-9 months period as further cultivation is unlikely until next Boro cropping season viz. October- November. 3. As per the DMC meeting in Brahmanbaria, it is recommended rehabilitation of the livelihood assets and capitals, particularly household based retail shops, small enterprises, home industry and / or livestock are important as the medium term interventions 4. Also through the meeting, special needs for the injured / hospitalized persons, who may have become handicapped and/or even disabled, had been prioritized in terms of livelihood/ health support

Education Immediate 1. Re-construction of school building of Ahmudabad registered primary school under Akhaura Upazila is necessary to avoid possible collapsing 2. Children should be provided with essential education materials and other utilities to continue education 3. Psychosocial support to students

Medium-Long Term 1. Strengthening educational infrastructures to provide shelter to locals in case of disaster situation 2. Plantation of trees in or around affected schools

Community Infrastructure Medium-Long Term 1. Repairing of damaged roads and communication system 2. Repairing and strengthening of large infrastructure, such as damaged school buildings, temples and mosque, which can be used as safe shelter during strong winds or other hazards by communities

DRR Medium-Long Term 1. Awareness on DRR through training, orientation and campaigning 2. As emerged from the DMC meeting, raising awareness on the household level preparedness measures to be taken in disasters as tornado was necessary among the people of Brahmanbaria Sadar, Akhura and Bijoynagar as well as the whole district. This may be included as initiating a safe school project. 3. It was also recommended to construct multipurpose tornado protective shelter/building at the most densely populated areas 4. A suggestion was made on the conducting of Community Risk Assessment (CRA) in the affected areas to identify the risks and subsequently develop RRAP (Risk Reduction Action Plan) for building resilience of the community 5. Plantation of suitable trees has been suggested to act as buffer against strong winds

Background

A tornado swept through more than a dozen rural villages in north-eastern Bangladesh in the district of Brahmanbaria on late Friday, 22 March 2013, killing at least 36 people, as per the government D- forms, and battering eight unions of three Upazilas (sub district) of Sadar, Akhaura and Bijoynagar. Around 431 people have been severely injured in the disaster of which 72 are hospitalized and a total of 1731 families affected (of which 1283 and 448 families have been severely and partially affected). Among the eight affected unions, Machihata and Basudeb of Sadar Upazila and union of Uttar Akhaura of Akhaura Upazila have been severely affected. Unions of Ramrail and Sultanpur of Sadar Upazila, Pourashava of Akhaura Upazila and unions of Dakshin Shingerbil and Pattan of Bijoynagar Upazila have been moderately affected by the disaster. The disaster has damaged and destroyed houses and impacted the residences’ water and sanitation facilities, and livelihoods.

In connection to the HCTT decision on 24 March 2013, the shelter and WASH cluster initiated a joint assessment on the recent disaster in Brahmanbaria district, through conducting Key Informant Interview (KII). The assessment was also joined by the Early Recovery / Food Security Cluster to understand the context of livelihood at present and priorities in this regard. Following the initiative, a joint team was formed where members from CDMP-UNDP, Disaster Management Department, Save the Children, UNDP/ERF, Habitat for Humanity and Picture 1 Tornado Affected Upazilas of Brahmanbaria IFRC volunteered to take part in Key District Informant Interview (KII) with various stakeholders from 03/04/2013-04/04/2013 at the District, Upazila and Union level in Brahmanbaria district. The KII was meant to understand the current situation, priorities of the affected population and gaps in assistance by various stakeholders.

Table 1 Affected Upazila and Unions of Brahmanbaria District District Affected Upazila Affected Union Severely Affected Moderately Affected Brahmanbaria Sadar Upazila  Machihata  Ramrail  Basudeb  Sultanpur

Akhaura Upazila  Uttar Akhaura  Pourashava

Bijoynagar  Dakshin Shingerbil  Pattan

The tornado wreaked havoc in Brahmanbaria district over a 15-minute period, uprooting thousands of trees and flattening hundreds of CGI sheet and mud-built houses and snapping road and rail communication within affected villages. According to the government statistics, 1778 houses have been completely destroyed and 744 houses have been partially damaged. While most of the affected population has been living without proper shelter since the storm, most are under tents and others have constructed temporary makeshift dwellings on the site of their original houses. The DMC

meeting, held in Brahmanbaria, stressed on the importance of conducting a physical survey by assessment team in the affected regions to have better understanding on the community needs and priorities.

As per the government D form, a total of 70 hectares (173 acres) of agricultural land has been completely destroyed and 450 hectares (1,112 acres) of agricultural land partially affected. A total of 295 hectares of Boro rice and 10 hectares of vegetable crops are completely damaged. The tornado impacted the low lying areas of Brahmanbaria district damaging mostly the mono crop of Boro rice production. Approximately, 213 hectares of rice was in flowering stage, which was completely damaged by high/circulating wind speed of the tornado. The storm carried much of the debris into the paddy fields, as a result affected the rice crops. No negative coping strategy is adopted by affected people till date. While 299 livestock had died in the disaster, as per the government statistics, much of the cattle sheds and poultry feed have been damaged which needs immediate repairing.

A total number of 371 tube-wells have been damaged in the tornado. In most cases, while the hand pump has been damaged, platforms are still useable. The communities are sharing existing water points in slightly distant locations. Moreover, a total number of 595 latrines have been damaged, of which 523 have been completely destroyed and 72 have been partially affected. With damaged latrine, communities share existing latrine or open defecate which is likely to lead to an epidemic if adequate latrine support is not covered before monsoon begins.

As per the D form, around ten educational institutions have been damaged. According to the DDMC, Brahmanbaria, one school had been severely damaged while eight schools and one college were partially affected. 5 religious institutions (mosques and temples) had been partially affected. While educational institutions have been functioning, the infrastructure needs to be strengthened/ renovated to reduce its vulnerability to collapsing.

Table 2 Summary of Affected Population and Shelters District Affected Affected Union Number of Dead Total families Affected/ Upazila Total Number of Upazila Shelters Affected Severely Moderately Partially Completely Partially Brahman Sadar Machihata 33+2(who were 1117 0 398 1612 694 Baria Upazila Basudeb residents of Kosba Upazila but died in Ramrail Sadar upazila on their Sultanpur visit there) Akhaura Uttar Akhaura 0 126 40 44 166 44 Upazila Pourashava Bijoynagar Dakshin 1 0 0 6 0 6 Shingerbil Pattan Total 36 1243 40 448 1778 744

*As collected from D-forms from Upazila level

Assessment Methodology

Methodology In connection to the HCTT decision on 24 March 2013, the shelter and WASH cluster initiated a joint assessment on the recent disaster in Brahmanbaria district, through conducting Key Informant Interview (KII). The assessment was also joined by the Early Recovery / Food Security Cluster to understand the context of livelihood at present and priorities in this regard. Following the initiative, a joint team was formed where Mohammad Mohiuddin, CRA Specialist, CDMP-UNDP; Md Abul Kashem, Assistant Director, Disaster Management Department; Md. Mohiuddin, Program Officer Emergency, Save the Children; Mriganko Shekhor Bhattacharjee, Programme Specialist (Livelihood), UNDP/ERF; Tanoy Dewan, Coordinator, Habitat for Humanity; Sumon Chandra Sil, Shelter & WATSAN Officer, IFRC and Sayeeda Farhana, Disaster Management Officer, IFRC, volunteered to take part in Key Informant Interview (KII) with various stakeholders from in Brahmanbaria district.

Objective The KII was meant to understand the current situation, priorities of the affected population and gaps in assistance by various stakeholders

Duration of the Assessment 03/04/2013-04/04/2013 to conduct KII at the District, Upazila and Union level

Tools of the Assessment The KII focussed on aspects including shelter, WASH and Early Recovery and Livelihood which had been conducted based on the formats provided: one, covering background and technical aspects on shelter, WASH and Early Recovery and a second format on agriculture. Available secondary information, such as D-forms at the Upazila level, had also been collected for reference.

A Disaster Management Committee (DMC) meeting was held on 3rd March 2013 at Deputy Commissioner (DC) office which had been facilitated by Mohammad Mohiuddin, CRA Specialist, CDMP-UNDP, in order to have a discussion on the objective of the KII to be conducted, to have an overview of the disaster situation and priorities in the aspects of shelter, WASH and Livelihood and the gaps in terms of assistance to the affected people. The meeting had been attended by Deputy Commissioner, Brahmanbaria, DRRO, Deputy Director from DAE, UNO of Brahmanbaria Sadar Upazila, Upazila Livestock Officer, Brahmanbaria Sadar, District Controller of Food, General Manager Rural Electrification Board, District Child Affairs officer, Ex.En -DPHE, District Primary Education Officer and other DMC members and the technical team members of Joint Assessment, Shelter, WASH and Early Recovery, including members from CDMP and DDM. The DMC chair had recommended in sharing the assessment team’s findings before dissemination with other external stakeholders (INGOs/NGOs and development partners).

The assessment team had later divided itself to conduct KII on the technical aspects, Shelter & WASH, Agriculture and Livestock, Education, based on his/her expertise.

Following are the KII conducted with Stakeholders at various levels:  KII with Deputy Commissioner, Brahmanbaria  KII with Sadar Upazila UNO and PIO  KII with District Education Officer, Brahmanbaria  KII with District Child Affairs officer, Brahmanbaria  KII with Deputy Director, DAE, Brahmanbaria

 KII with Upazila Agriculture officer Sadar  KII with Upazila Livestock Officer, Sadar  KII with Executive Engineer, DPHE, Brahmanbaria  KII with Secretary and Vice Chairman, BDRCS Brahmanbaria Unit

 KII with Sub Assistant Engineer, DPHE Sadar  KII with UP Secretary and Basudeb UP Chairman

 KII with Akhaura Upazila Agriculture and Livestock officer  KII with Akhaura Upazila Education Officer  KII with Akhaura Upazila UNO and PIO  KII with Sub Assistant Engineer, DPHE, Akhaura  KII with Uttar Akhaura UP Chairman

Reporting The team had been divided to produce reports on the technical aspects, Shelter & WASH, Agriculture and Livestock, Education, based on his/her expertise and a background on damage information was reported. The individual reports were produced based on the questions in the KII. The individual reports were then compiled into a consolidated one as per the suggested reporting format.

Table 3 Report Submission & Responsibility Report Responsibility Submission Date Shelter & WASH Suman Chandra Sil, IFRC & 07/04/2013 Tanoy Dewan, Habitat for Humanity Agriculture and Livestock Mriganko Shekhor 07/04/2013 Bhattacharjee, UNDP/ERF Education Md Mohiuddin, Save the 07/04/2013 Children Background: Current Sayeeda Farhana, IFRC 07/04/2013 Situation and Damage Information Compilation of the Report Sayeeda Farhana, IFRC & 08/04/2013 Mohammad Mohiuddin, CDMP-UNDP

The draft compiled report had been shared with the assessment team on 10/04/2013 for review and feedback. The comments had been incorporated in the final draft document. The draft report had also been shared with the Deputy Commissioner (DC), Brahmanbaria for his feedback on 11/04/2013.

Key Findings

Overall Disaster Impact i) The tornado in the district of Brahmanbaria on late Friday, 22 March 2013, killed at least 36 people, as per the government D-forms, and affected eight unions of three upazilas (sub district) of Sadar, Akhaura and Bijoynagar. ii) Around 431 people have been severely injured in the disaster, of which 72 are hospitalized, and a total of 1731 families affected (of which 1283 and 448 families have been severely and partially affected). iii) Among the eight affected unions, Machihata and Basudeb of Sadar Upazila and union of Uttar Akhaura of Akhaura Upazila have been severely Picture 2 KII with Deputy Commissioner, Brahmanbaria affected. Unions of Ramrail and Sultanpur of Sadar Upazila, Pourashava of Akhaura Upazila and unions of Dakshin Shingerbil and Pattan of Bijoynagar Upazila have been moderately affected by the disaster. iv) Although the tornado hit limited geographical areas and the damages caused were location specific, the degree of devastation and destruction were high in the affected villages. v) The disaster has damaged and destroyed houses and impacted the residences’ water and sanitation facilities, and livelihoods. vi) Small and medium farmers are the vulnerable groups and should be considered in case of immediate assistance in terms of shelter, physical structures and livelihood vii) Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) groups have also been recommended for consideration when providing assistance

Shelter i) According to the government statistics, 1778 houses have been completely destroyed and 744 houses have been partially damaged. ii) Affected populations are currently taking protection in emergency shelters (in tarpaulin/tent) provided Picture 3 KII with Executive Engineer, DPHE, Brahmanbaria by government, I/NGOs and BDRCS and others have constructed temporary makeshift dwellings on the site of their original houses iii) At present, no one is taking shelter in school/college or any other communal places iv) Most of the affected people do not have resources/materials to re-construct their houses and require transitional and or permanent shelters for protection in the upcoming monsoon

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)

Water i) A total number of 371 tube-wells have been damaged in the tornado. ii) In most cases, while the hand pump has been damaged, platforms are still useable. The communities are sharing existing water points in slightly distant locations. iii) Existence of Shallow water table is found in the area iv) No arsenic contamination has been recorded so far

Sanitation i) A total number of 595 latrines have been damaged, of which 523 have been completely destroyed and 72 have been partially affected. ii) With damaged latrine, communities share existing latrine or open defecate which is likely to lead to an epidemic if adequate latrine support is not covered before monsoon begins. iii) DPHE does not have adequate stock of emergency materials (spare parts of TWs/latrine materials) iv) DPHE personnel involved in responding to emergency situations need adequate training v) Required number of ready-made RCC rings and slabs was not found in that area Picture 4 KII with Vice Chairman and Secretary, BDRCS Hygiene Brahmanbaria Unit i) 10 CHP and Hygiene supervisor have been deployed by the DPHE and UNICEF to advocate affected communities in maintaining personal hygiene at critical periods and avoid chances of water/vector borne disease

Livelihoods i) A total of 70 hectares (173 acres) of agricultural land has been completely destroyed and 450 hectares (1,112 acres) of agricultural land partially affected. A total of 295 hectares of Boro rice and 10 hectares of vegetable crops have been completely damaged. The tornado impacted the low lying areas of Brahmanbaria district damaging mostly the mono crop or Boro rice production. ii) Around 530 of the affected 1731 families are identified as the very poor Picture 5 KII with District Agriculture Officer, and marginal families and cannot Brahmanbaria

restore livelihoods without mid/long term external support iii) Small and medium farmers are the most vulnerable group of this mishap who lost houses, cattle, poultry, trees and household resources including major crop, rice. iv) Approximately, 213 hectares of rice was in flowering stage, which was completely damaged by high/circulating wind speed of the tornado. v) Rice crop was in panicle initiation in significant areas (2880 hectares), which was also moderately affected. vi) The storm carried much of the debris into the paddy fields, as a result affected the rice crops. vii) Boro rice cultivation is the key income source for small and medium farmers that is grown once in a year viii) Farmers in the affected area are solely depended on Boro rice cultivation to support its household needs including food, health and education. ix) Around 1100 farmers have lost their main field crop that is Boro rice cultivation in the disaster. The tornado hit areas are mostly low-lying and single cropping zone and Boro rice is the key crop cultivation in this area. According to the agricultural experts’, further crop production is not possible in the affected low lying regions until next Boro cropping season viz. October-November, which may lead to food insecurity during this period and make affected communities dependent on external support. Therefore, farm-based families require mid and long term alternative support to manage livelihood, for at least for 6- 9 months period, who will otherwise adopt harmful coping strategies such as selling of agricultural land, cattle and even migrate to other regions temporarily. x) On the other hand, assistance(seed, fertilizer, management costs) to farmers (poor, marginal, small and medium) for next Aman rice production, in case of highland areas within the affected region, is recommended which will begin from end July. xi) The DMC meeting mentions support needed for rehabilitation of the Picture 6 KII with District Education Officer & District livelihood assets and capitals Child Affairs officer of Brahmanbaria particularly household based small retail shops, small enterprises, home-based small industry and / or livestock xii) About 300 people lost their livestock resources and majority of them are poor and marginal farm- based households like agricultural labour, share-cropper and others. A significant number of households also lost their fodder, cattle/poultry sheds, which will create an added long-term effect. xiii) While it is informed that government and other agencies have provided significant relief to the poor and marginal groups, the small and medium farmers have been excluded from the support in general xiv) Although no negative coping strategy is adopted by affected people at present, because relief support is being operational by government and other agencies, few informants opined that the community is more inclined to external support that may delay the resume of original livelihood.

16 xv) While 299 livestock had died in the disaster, as per the government statistics, much of the cattle sheds and poultry feed have been damaged which needs repairing.

Education i) As per the D form, around ten educational institutions have been damaged. ii) While educational institutions have been functioning, the infrastructure needs to be strengthened/ renovated to reduce its vulnerability to collapsing. Such is the case of the Ahmudabad Registered primary school in Akhaura Upazila which was already in fragile condition before tornado hit. iii) In total four primary schools were partially damaged by tornado of which three are in Sadar Upazila and one in Akhaura Upazila of Brahmanbaria district. iv) One higher secondary college have been damaged in the disaster at the Sadar Upazila of the district. v) Education materials of students such as books and other stationeries that were kept in the school were lost in the twister vi) As well as student’s learning materials, books, stationeries and dress, were also lost during the disaster vii) A few students are psychologically depressed witnessing the recent devastations of the disaster while some others have been injured viii) At present, many students cannot attend regular classes as they are busy in household chores and other work helping to store living and livelihood, hence the rate of attendance falls ix) Education departments have taken quick initial initiatives to continue smooth functioning of educational institutions

Priorities identified by Upazila Officials Through ranking in the ascending order, the following are the priorities indicated by the key informants in the KII on various aspects:

Table 4 Priorities identified by Upazila Officials Priorities Sector (Based on Ranking of the number of KII conducted) Shelter Shelter is considered as the utmost priority under the current context of disaster situation where affected populations are taking temporary protection mostly in tents and/or makeshifts. While much of the original shelters have been destroyed in the disaster, repairing/reconstruction of the 1 housing or construction of transition/ permanent shelter is important as the immediate intervention to secure the affected people from expected rain and storms in the coming days. According to the BDRCS Brahmanbaria Unit, a few in Chinail of the Machihata union, in the Sadar Upazila, had taken shelter in the schools after the disaster who had now returned to original place of homes. WASH Water Sanitation and Hygiene is ranked as the second priority as most of the tube wells and sanitary latrines have been battered in the tornado. While communities collect drinking water 2 from the existing water points in relatively distant locations, communities share latrines and or open defecate. In terms of assistance, in providing sanitary latrines, the gaps have to be identified to cover the greater fraction of the affected population and avoid possible spread of an epidemic, such as diarrhea/ dysentery, while the monsoon nears. Livestock 3 Livestock in Akhaura Upazila has been greatly affected while in other areas the farms of cows and poultry sheds have been devastated as reported by the PIO in Akhaura upazila and BDRCS representatives in Brahmanbaria. School & Infrastructure School Infrastructure in areas, particularly in Sadar & Akhaura upazila, has been damaged. 4 According to the PIO in Akhaura Upazila, while schools are functioning, the infrastructure stands vulnerable to collapsing and could injure children. Apart from schools, madrasa and temples have also been damaged and needs repairing. Livelihood Livelihood has been ranked as the fifth priority. This area depends on agro-based livelihoods along with various off-farm options. Agricultural crops have been damaged by this tornado; however off-farm options remain somehow in a satisfactory level. Available employment opportunities exist around the area and markets remains stable, which is quite supportive for the day-labourer and working people. Rice planting season had ended, the paddy and rice fields 5 have been moderately damaged by the tornado. Much of the debris has damaged the crop fields in the aftermath of the disaster. However, majority of the affected communities of Akhura upazila are fishermen and also the minorities who have lost boats and fishing tools in the disaster. Although livelihood is ranked as the fifth priority but all of the respondents agreed that it has long- term effect. Therefore, massive agricultural input/ support (seed, fertilizer, management costs) to farmers (poor, marginal, small and medium) will be necessary for next Aman rice production, in case of highland areas within the affected region, which will begin from end July and is then likely to become a key priority. Majority of the affected farmers, have lost main field crop that is Boro

rice in the disaster and as the tornado hit areas are mostly low-lying, the agricultural experts’ indicate that further crop production is not possible in the affected low lying regions until next Boro cropping season viz. October-November. Therefore, farm-based families require mid and long term alternative support to manage livelihood, for at least for next 6-9 months period, otherwise they might adopt harmful coping strategies such as selling of agricultural land, cattle and even migrate to other regions for subsistence. At present, though, the affected communities are more inclined to external support and are engaged in rebuilding houses.

A consideration was made on the injured and those likely to be handicapped as a result of the disaster. Such individuals are more vulnerable to not being able to continue traditional work and may require support in terms of health and adopting alternative livelihood. According to BDRCS representatives, there are chances that those handicapped might turn into beggars while others with lost livelihood might migrate to other regions. Others (Electric Poles & Tree Plantation) 6 Electric Poles & Tree Plantations in much of the regions have been dismantled and uprooted in the storm. The debris has been cleared, while much of the electric poles are still being repaired by the local government. Access to (Roads, Culverts, Bridges, etc) 7 In few locations, the roads had been damaged and hence ranked as one of the priorities that need to be repaired in order to strengthen communication. That way increasing accessibility of the community and making it possible to reach remote population with assistance.

Detailed Assessment Findings

Shelter As per physical observation, information collected from secondary sources (government D forms) and interview of key stakeholders (such as Union Parishad Chairman), the superstructure of most houses are made of locally available bamboo and CGI sheets. Only a few numbers of houses have masonry superstructure with masonry foundation. The dwellers do not practice any special measures to make their houses tornado resilient.

With no rain since the aftermath of the disaster, the affected people are able to sustain in their temporary tents/makeshifts homes. Hence it is necessary to immediately provide transitional and or permanent shelters to secure the population from the upcoming monsoon. Picture 7: Affected family taking temporary shelter in

tents, Basudeb Union, Brahmanbaria A significant number of people especially female/girls/adolescents has been staying in host community/relatives homes. Some of the existing RCC/masonry core shelters are still standing, however, study on structural strength/risk assessment of the existing houses can be done to determine whether the shelter is safe for living or not. If needed, there may be some recommendations for rectification in the shelter strength.

Water Sanitation & Hygiene

The main drinking water supply option in the affected area is hand tube-well. As adequate quantity of water can be extracted from shallow aquifer (220 ft-300 ft.), shallow tube-wells are common and popular in the community. Also there is no record of arsenic contamination in the affected area. In the disaster, the tube well hand pumps have been affected. Under high wind speed of the tornado and up- thrust forces, the hand pumps have been removed from GI/PVC pipe connection and thrown aside.

Table 5 Damaged water supply system (As per local DPHE office) SL Upazila Union # of TWs damaged Machihata 148 1 Sadar Basudeb 137 Sultanpur 14 2 Akhaura Uttar Akhaura 44 Pattan 28 3 Bijoynagar Dakshin Singerbil Total 371

Conventional on-site direct pour-flush sanitation system is the most common technology in the affected area. Community people are very used to with simple RCC ring and slab system with locally made superstructure. Almost every latrine’s superstructure has been completely demolished by the disaster. Based on the information given by the informants, following is an overview of the number of damaged latrines in the area.

Table 6 Damaged sanitary system (As per local DPHE office) # of latrines damaged SL Upazila Union Superstructure Only Total and Ring-slab Superstructure Machihata 266 - 266 1 Sadar Basudeb 155 - 155 Sultanpur 40 - 40 2 Akhaura Uttar Akhaura 62 38 100 Pattan 3 Bijoynagar Dakshin - 34 34 Singerbil Total 523 72 595

Livelihoods

Agriculture A total of 70 hectares of crops had been fully damaged and 450 hectares crops partially damaged during the disaster. Total crop land in this area before the tornado hit was 20,295 hectares (19,580 hectares of rice and 715 hectares of vegetable crops). Total crop land after the tornado was 19,990 hectares as 305 hectares in average had been damaged.

Table 7 Damage in Agriculture (As per Department of Agriculture Extension) Upazila Crops Total Affected Damage (%) Other area (Ha) remarks area (Ha)

B. Baria Sadar Rice (Boro) 14430 490 Fully (100%) damaged: 60 275 ha. fully ha. damaged in Partially (50%) damaged: an average 430 ha. Vegetable 715 10 100% 10 ha. fully damaged Akhaura Rice (Boro) 5150 30 Fully (100%) damaged: 10 20 ha. fully ha. damaged in Partially (50%) damaged: 20 an average ha. Vegetable 0 0 No/insignificant cultivation Total 20295 530

 No agricultural damage reported in Bijoynagar

Table 8 Status of production during disaster per Upazila Upazila Area Area affected as per stage Other remarks planted Tillering Panicle Flowering initiation stage

B.Baria 3698 ha. 925 (25%) 2588 (70%) 185 (5%) The figures only Sadar calculated in the affected area, not the entire Akhaura 390 ha. 70 (18%) 292 (75%) 28 (7%) upazila Total 4088 ha. 995 2880 213

This is mostly a mono-cropping area of Boro rice and the planting period is already over. Therefore, none of the affected farmers have returned to cultivate rice. Aman plantation is possible in two villages in Brahmanbaria Sadar but it will begin from July/August. DAE also selected 520 marginal farmers for Aus rice cultivation from mid April and their selection process is ongoing. DAE has planned to provide seed, fertilizer and Tk. 300/-for irrigation cost.

None of the areas has been recovered till the assessment date. The tornado affected area is low-lying land, as already mentioned, and the season is not favourable to restart Boro rice cultivation. Conversely, Aman rice cultivation will begin with the monsoon from end July – a few farmer might cultivate Aman rice during that time, in the highlands within the affected region. While around 1100 farmers, that is majority of the affected farmers, have lost main Picture 8 Debris in the rice fields, Brahmanbaria field crop that is Boro rice cultivation in the disaster, the agricultural experts indicate that further crop production is not possible in the affected low lying regions until next Boro cropping season viz. October-November. Therefore, farm-based families require mid and long term alternative support to manage livelihood, for at least for next 6-9 months period, who will otherwise adopt harmful coping strategies such as selling of agricultural land, cattle and even migrate to other regions.

Generally, vegetables are grown in high land and vegetable crops are more susceptible to all disasters like floods, winds and cyclones. Most of the vegetables like tomato, egg-plant, and chilli in the tornado affected villages were in fruiting stage, which had been entirely destroyed. The vegetable fields (plants) were damaged as the root zone of the plant had torsion/twisted. Even the circulating wind of the tornado uprooted the vegetable crops in few areas.

None of the vegetable growers resume to production. Generally, winter and early summer field vegetables are grown in this area and the planting time is already over. However, there are still

scopes to cultivate few vegetables of certain species (such as vine crops) in homestead and adjacent high land. Particularly, summer/monsoon vegetable cultivation is possible in few areas in Ramrai, Machihata and Sultanpur unions under Brahmanbaria Sadar upazila, where land is moderately high with semi-sandy soil.

SEASONNAL CALENDAR Table 9 Seasonal Calendar Months

Seasonality analysis Jan Fe Mar Apr May Jun Ju Aug Se Oct Nov De b l p c

Aus (field preparation, plantation, harvesting)

Aman (field preparation, plantation, harvesting)

Boro(field preparation, plantation, harvesting)

Robi (field preparation, plantation, harvesting)

Vegetable (considering all area incl. homestead)

Others (Jute – in few areas)

The main constraint faced by the vegetable farmers to restart their production is the low land area where vegetable cultivation is not possible in late summer/monsoon except homestead region. The agriculture officers informed regarding the constraints in resume of vegetable farming: 1. People are busy with house rebuilding; 2. People involved with day-labourer and/or waiting for relief support, 3. Non availability of monsoon vegetable seeds and cultivation techniques

Livestock The main livestock in this area are cattle, poultry, goats and ducks. Following is a damage statistics on livestock by the disaster:

Table 10 Damage Information on Livestock (As per Department of Livestock Services) Upazila Name of the livestock Total Number Affected by tornado Other remarks

Dead Injured

Brahman Baria Sadar Cow 606 132 222 This data refers to only the Goat/sheep 85 42 18

Chicken/duck 6550 4590 246 affected area

Akhaura Cow 105 6 31

Chicken/duck 218 40 146

No data available from Bijoynagar Upazila. Very minimal casualty

No outbreak was reported on cattle or poultry diseases. However, Department of Livestock (DLS) suspected possible occurrence of Anthrax (Tarka) diseases for cattle and New Castle (Ranikhet) diseases for poultry birds. Therefore, they had already started vaccination programme for cattle and poultry. Till 3rd April, the DLS, Brahmanbaria vaccinated 141 cattle and 200 poultry birds accordingly. They also provided treatments to the injured 141 cattle, 29 goat/sheep and 300 poultry birds.

Livestock officers reported that they did not receive any relevant information regarding the coping mechanisms adopted for losing livestock in the disaster. However, it is suspected that possibility of selling livestock by affected people is likely since livestock feed/fodder is extremely scarce in the affected area and the situation will deteriorate in upcoming monsoon. Also the affected people are receiving adequate relief materials (food, NFI, shelter etc.) from different sources. But if the relief is ceased, likelihood of selling livestock is higher.

Livestock fodder is a severe problem in this area and the disaster has worsened the situation. The recent survey of DLS, Brahmanbaria, estimated livestock fodder loss of Tk. 1,199,100/- and loss of Tk. 6,647,500 for cattle shed damages. The main constraints faced by the people to restart their livestock rearing are mainly three: 1. affected people lost their cattle/poultry stocks and unable to procure new stocks until they restore their immediate food and shelter needs; 2. people are in survival stage and involved with priorities to meet their daily livelihoods and house reconstruction, 3. severe lack and high price of cattle and poultry feed prohibit them to restart livelihood restocking.

At present, marginal and poor people have available employment opportunities such as agricultural/household labour, rickshaw/van puller etc. Markets remains stable and affected people have easy access to markets. Small shopkeepers/traders (poor/marginal household) can continue their business. Majority (mostly all) of the affected people have already received significant emergency relief items like food stuffs, NFIs, tents, housing materials (CGI sheet), treatments etc. from government. Apart from government support, considerable amount of emergency relief support is provided by NGOs, BDRCS, local/social organisations, corporate and individuals. No negative coping strategy is adopted by affected people until present.

Education While educational institutions have been functioning, the infrastructure needs to be strengthened/ renovated to reduce its vulnerability to collapsing. Such is the case of the Ahmudabad Registered primary school in Akhaura Upazila which was already in fragile condition before tornado hit. In total four primary schools were partially damaged by tornado of which three are in Sadar Upazila and one in Akhaura Upazila of Brahmanbaria district. One college have been damaged in the disaster at the Sadar upazilla of district. Education materials of students such as books and other stationeries that were kept in the school were lost. As well as student’s learning materials, books, stationeries and dress, are also lost during the disaster. A few students are psychologically depressed witnessing the

recent devastations of the disaster while some others have been injured. At present, many students cannot attend regular classes as they are busy in household chores and other work helping to store living and livelihood, hence the rate of attendance falls. Education departments have taken quick initial initiatives to continue smooth functioning of educational institutions

Completed and Planned Interventions Immediately after the disaster, assistance, particularly emergency shelter and non food items (NFI), cash grants and food support, had been supported by government, I/NGOs, BDRCS and other humanitarian organizations to affected population. Following is a summary of the support provided by government, humanitarian and other agencies at a glance.

Table 11 Summary of Assistance by Government, BDRCS, NGOs and other agencies SL Government source Non-government source # 01 Gratuitous relief in cash BDT Dutch Bangla C.I Sheer Distribution 700 Bundle 25,77,500.00 Bank 02 Gratuitous relief in kind 261.580 MT DO Gratuitous relief in cash BDT (Rice) 10,50,000 03 House building support BDT Trust Bank Gratuitous relief in cash BDT 500,000 in cash 74,46,000.00 04 C.I Sheet Distribution 2658 Bundle DO Sharee 850 pcs 05 Tent from the Army- 803 Nos. Ashuganj Gratuitous relief in cash BDT 500,000 Comilla Cantonment Power Station 06 Bangladesh Police- 650 families @ DO Lungi 850 pcs B.Baria 3kgs rice, 2kgs Potato, 1kg Lentil WFP Fortified Biscuits 12.33 MTs BDRCS Family Kit, Triple & 600 Nos. water container and a mobile medical team for 3 days

Shelter Immediately after the tornado, local stakeholders, BDRCS and I/NGOs have distributed numbers of tarpaulin to the affected population to provide emergency shelter including the Bangladesh Army.

Table 12 A brief summary of the major Shelter responses Sl Agency/organization Response Remarks 1 Bangladesh Govt. through 1. Distributed 2 bundle of CGI sheet to a local administration number of 1,283 HHs. 2. Distributed 803 tents to the affected family. 2 Bangladesh Army 3. Distributed 800 family tents Also assisted to fix the tents where needed. 3 Bangladesh Red Crescent 4. Distributed 600 tarpaulins. Society (BDRCS) 4 Dutch Bangla Bank 5. Distributed 700 bundle of CGI sheet. 5 Society for Social and 6. 18 pieces of CGI sheet to a number of technological Group 100 families. 6 Host Community 7. Host community people also offered their best assistance to the affected families.

Water Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH)

Water The Department of Public Health and Engineering (DPHE) along with UNICEF has responded to the water supply system. The major components of the responses are repairing of existing tube-wells and installation of new tube-wells.

Table 13 Responses intervened in terms of water supply Sl Upazila # of TWs repaired # of new TW installed Total

1 Sadar 341 17 358 2 Akhaura 42 02 44 Total 383 19 402

Additionally, DPHE and Bangladesh Red Crescent Society have distributed numbers of Jerry can as the non food item to the tornado affected population: 1. A total of 960 Jerry can has been distributed by DPHE 2. A total of 600 Jerry can has been distributed by Bangladesh Red Crescent Society

Sanitation Department of Public health and Engineering (DPHE) had a significant response in the aftermath of the disaster. The major assistance was distribution of RCC rings and slab and construction of new latrine with ring slab and superstructure. Following have been distributed to affected families by DPHE: 1. 300 sets (3 rings and 1 slab) of RCC rings and slab have been distributed. 2. 200 sets of ring and slab are under construction.

Hygiene 10 Community Hygiene Promoter (CHP) and 01 Hygiene Supervisor have been deployed by DPHE for advocating the affected population on maintain hygiene practises at critical periods.

Livelihood As per the seasonal calendar and Brahmanbaria perspective, the cropping season is not very feasible in terms of agricultural rehab. The affected villages are low-lying land and only Boro rice is grown here. Apart from homestead and adjacent high lands, cultivation of vegetables is also not possible in this area. However, the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) are in a process to support 520 farmers for Aus rice cultivation, which will start from end April. The support package is: paddy seed – 5 kg, fertilizer -40 kg and Tk. 300/- for irrigation cost that has been estimated for one bigha land (33 decimals). Now DAE is in a process to select appropriate farmers for Aus rice. DAE Deputy Director and Upazila Agriculture Officers informed to prioritize the tornado affected farmers. Simultaneously, DAE strengthened their on-going technical support to the affected agricultural blocks, particularly on management of partially affected Boro rice and vegetable crops.

Education In terms of education, the education department of the government has taken initiatives to keep the education institutions functional. Following are the assistance provided by Education department of the government as emerged from the KII from education officer at the upazila level. 1. BDT 9, 00,000.00 (BDT nine hundred thousand) had been distributed to three damaged primary schools of Sadar upazilla under Brahmanbaria (BDT three hundred thousand per school) by education departments of government.

2. The education department of government provided new books and ball pen to 1180 students of affected primary schools along with 615 students of high schools for continuing their studies 3. Education departments of government distributed 615,000.000 (BDT six hundred and fifteen thousand) to 615 students (Per student one thousand taka). 4. Education departments of Akhaura upazila provided new books to 45 students who are the affected students of Ahmadabad registry primary school 5. CUB team of Ahkaura upazila distributed a total BDT 30,000.00 (Thirty thousand) taka to 82 affected HHs 6. Apart from government initiatives, locally the teachers of primary schools in Akhaura upazila had provided and collected donation from 52 primary schools. A total of sixty thousand taka had been collected and distributed to affected families of Akhaura Upazila

Response Challenges The local government indicated a number of challenges they encountered in responding to the disaster situation in the interview in terms of overall assistance and technical aspects.

Overall Response 1. Inadequate logistics engaged in managing relief assistance and reaching the affected communities within shortest period of time. Communication, such as damaged and narrow roads, was one of the challenges to reach affected population with assistance quickly 2. Inadequate resource to provide adequate support to affected families in terms of shelter and other aspects 3. Absence of coordinated response to affected population and hence duplication was likely to result 4. Unlike other parts of the country, existence of NGOs is less in the district and hence communities are less accustomed to the works of NGOs. As a result, response initiatives would be challenging for external NGOs/development agencies. 5. The district of Brahmanbaria lies on the river basin and is exposed to floods during extreme events. Since the monsoon is approaching, affected population may encounter rains and floods, from early July to September, and likely to suffer most. 6. While national election is near and local leaders are negotiating with government and development agencies for more relief and rehabilitation, further response in Brahmanbaria could be critical in terms of targeting appropriate beneficiaries and management.

Water With lack of adequate resources, skills and knowledge, a number of challenges have been experienced in responding to disaster situation by the local stakeholder in Water and Sanitation that are explained below: 1. DPHE personnel involved in responding to emergency situations need adequate training and skills 2. DPHE have inadequate stock of emergency materials (spare parts of TWs/latrine materials). As reported, it has taken a couple of days to manage/collect these parts in order to start repairing. 3. DPHE does not have any emergency fund to respond immediately. Managing of resource had taken time. 4. DPHE had a limited number of vehicles which were inadequate to respond immediately

Sanitation 1. Inadequate ready stock of rings and slabs 2. There were no emergency latrine materials (plastic slab, superstructure etc.).

3. Adequate number of ready-made ring and slab was not available in the area. Hence the rings and slabs had to be produced and then distributed. For production, at least 7 days curing time was required. 4. DPHE was not able to provide any superstructure materials for latrine construction 5. DPHE personnel did not have adequate training to deal with emergency situation

Livelihood 1. Although the tornado hit limited geographical areas and the damages caused were location specific, the degree of devastation and destruction were severe in the affected villages in terms of shelter, WASH and livelihood which results in immediate mid and longer term humanitarian response needs. Therefore, the response should be integrated (shelter and WASH interventions along with livelihood restoration programme) in order to make initiatives tangible or sustainable.

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