INDIA/GUJARAT EARTHQUAKE (Appeal 04/2001)
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INDIA/GUJARAT: EARTHQUAKE 6 March 2001 appeal no. 04/2001 situation report no. 15 period covered: 2 - 5 March 2001 Assessments relating to water and sanitation and relief needs have been undertaken. All villages in the districts of Bhuj, Anjar and Bhachau now have adequate access to clean water and it is estimated that there is an additional need for some 13,000 tents which are required for urban areas. Improvements have been made to the International Federation compound which is now linked to the Bhuj town sewage system and life in the city of Bhuj is starting to return to normal. The International Federation’s planning mission team is currently in Bhuj and is focusing on the areas of health, social welfare, disaster preparedness and water and sanitation. The context At 08.50 hours on Friday, 26 January, a series of powerful earthquakes struck Gujarat state in western India, peaking at a massive 7.9 on the Richter scale, with tremors being felt across several states as well as in Delhi and Mumbai (Bombay) and in neighbouring Pakistan. The epicentre of the quake was 30 km north of the town of Bhuj (population of 150,000), the headquarters of Gujarat’s Kutch district while, at the same time, seriously affecting all the area within a range of 100 km from the epicentre including Ahmadabad, the largest city in the state of Gujarat. Infrastructure has been severely damaged, resulting in large scale collapse of buildings, mine cave-ins, train derailments and power failure, cutting off the water supply. A series of aftershocks (approximately 400 with 19 measuring over 5 on the Richter scale) has been keeping the population and the authorities on constant alert. appeal no. 04/01 situation report no. 15 India is divided into five seismic zones with respect to severity of earthquakes. The entire Kutch area lies close to the western margin of the Indian plate and falls into zone 5. It is thus very prone to earthquakes. According to the 1991 census, the population in Kutch district was 1.2 million. It is estimated that the population in the district before the earthquake had reached around 1.6 million. Latest events Life in the city of Bhuj is starting to return to normal, to the extent possible. Shopkeepers who did not lose their shops have opened their doors. There is traffic on the streets although many roads are still blocked with rubble and bulldozers are working round the clock. During the last few days, the official death toll from the earthquake has risen only slightly and presently stands at 19,801 with 18,212 in Bhuj taluka (sub-district) of Kutch district, 751 in Ahmadabad district and 433 in Rajkot district. All other districts (21 in total) have a significantly smaller number of registered deaths. The World Bank loan for Gujarat and the deep-rooted caste system are widely discussed in many circles in relation to the state government reconstruction plans. Whilst those who are not in favour of the loan emphasise that the state will have to be prepared to repay some USD 3 billion over the next seven to eight years, others are more concerned with the caste dimension of the government’s relocation plans, underlining the need for sensitivity in dealing with this issue. Several NGOs have urged the Gujarat government not to rely extensively upon offers of adoption of villages which represents the main strategy within the reconstruction package. As regards relief, the government has been urged to ensure that disaster victims are not considered as mere beneficiaries of aid, but are able to play an active role in the recovery of the state. The Netherlands government has announced a donation of approximately USD 110 million (INR 500 crores) under the Dutch development assistance scheme. This will be available to the state of Gujarat over a period of three years. Red Cross/Red Crescent action Overview l The International Federation has sought CHF 25.6 million in cash, kind and services to assist 300,000 beneficiaries (60,000 families) for four months to support the Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS) activities in the most affected areas in the district of Kutch, state of Gujarat. Some 40 Red Cross Red Crescent Societies and/or their governments have so far extended their support to the International Federation operation. The main objective has been to provide the beneficiaries with essential shelter, health and medical services, safe water and other urgently needed relief items. In support of IRCS activities, the Red Cross Red Crescent Societies responded with relief supplies and emergency response units (ERUs) comprising a 350-bed joint Norwegian/Finnish Red Cross emergency response referral hospital, German and French Red Cross water and sanitation units, a Japanese Red Cross mobile clinic, a British Red Cross logistics emergency response team, a telecommunications emergency response team from the Austrian and Spanish Red Cross Societies and a Spanish Red Cross emergency response primary health care unit. 2 appeal no. 04/01 situation report no. 15 To date, 11,653 patients have been treated in the Red Cross health facilities, 316 operations have been performed and 94 deliveries have taken place. Since 3 February, 908 patients have been x-rayed and 898 tests have been conducted in the laboratory. Thirty three deaths have been registered so far. Approximately 175,000 blankets, 57,000 tarpaulins, 3,500 tents, 11,500 kitchen sets and 9,000 water containers have been distributed since the operation commenced. Each family assisted by the operation receives 2 tarpaulins and 5 blankets, with water containers and kitchen sets provided to those whose homes were completely destroyed. In addition, some 45 water tanks (storage tanks, collapsible bladder tanks, “onion” tanks) with capacity ranging from 2,000 litres to 95,000 litres, have been installed to date by the French and German Red Cross Societies’ water/sanitation teams in the area of Bhuj, Anjar and Bhachau. In parallel with their daily emergency response activities, the emergency response units operating from the Red Cross compound in the town of Bhuj as well as from Sukhpur and Bhachau, have started their gradual integration into the Federation’s system and structures. Indian Red Cross Society l The Secretary General of the Indian Red Cross Society presented an overview of the Red Cross Red Crescent supported operation to the members of the Indian Red Cross board as well as to representatives of the federal government, and received positive feedback. The IRCS will host a partnership meeting in Delhi on 21 and 22 March 2001 to which all Red Cross Red Crescent Societies contributing to the International Federation’s India earthquake appeal (04/01) have been invited. The main objective of the meeting is to validate the Red Cross Red Crescent recovery and rehabilitation programme, as recommended by the International Federation planning mission, and agree implementation modalities. Recovery and rehabilitation planning mission l Presently in Bhuj, the members of the International Federation planning mission have focused on the following areas: medical/health; social welfare; disaster preparedness; water/sanitation; reconstruction; implementation capacities and presence of the IRCS at the communal level. Field visits to Abdasa and Nakhatrana talukas were made. The team has met with the state relief coordinator and discussed the issue of reconstruction and the housing policy. Additional meetings are planned with state officials in Ahmadabad. Possibilities for linking the Gujarat earthquake programme with the drought relief programme are under consideration. According to a community-based action review of the drought 2000 in Gujarat entitled "agenda for drought relief 2001" prepared by the Disaster Mitigation Institute in Bhuj, some 216 talukas and 12,240 villages are suffering from drought or semi drought conditions. Health l The government has assigned doctors and nurses to continue with single seven to ten day shifts in the Red Cross hospital in Bhuj, making prescription of medication and monitoring of consumption of medicine a difficult task. Five private doctors have been employed on short term basis. A contingency plan to cater for 120 patients has been prepared for a potential influx of patients repatriated from hospitals in other states. The average length of stay in the Red Cross referral hospital is presently 10 days. The number of paediatric and internal medicine patients as well as the number of psychiatric cases and victims of car accidents is increasing on daily basis. A gynaecologist is urgently needed as well as replacements for the general practitioner and the laboratory technician. 3 appeal no. 04/01 situation report no. 15 The table below shows the number of patients treated in all Red Cross medical facilities during the reporting period: Reporting Norwegian/Finnish Japanese Red Cross Spanish Red Cross period Red Cross emergency mobile hospital in primary health care response referral Sukhpur unit in Bhachau hospital in Bhuj 2 - 5 March Treated 583 409 322 patients (total) Surgical 24 operations Trauma cases 0 23 56 Inpatients average 144 Deliveries 13 Deaths 1 X-ray 57 Laboratory 82 tests The structure of the outpatient department includes two sections, one for chronic patients and one for casualties and dressings. Separate tents for gynaecological consultations and vaccination have also been set up. Vaccination of new-born babies against tuberculosis and polio as well as vaccination of paediatric patients in the wards has started. The Spanish Red Cross primary health care team in Bhachau reports that four primary health centres have begun operating from tents in the area. The Spanish Red Cross team has provided the primary health centres with health kits (one kit per health centre). The team will also provide these centres with additional tents in order to boost their inpatient capacity.