Alert

Angola 1/2007

Floods in Angola

Geneva, 1 February 2007

Recent flooding in Luanda, Benguela and other western Angolan provinces have resulted in the deaths of some 90 people and have contributed to a worsening cholera outbreak.

The members of ACT in Angola are coordinating their responses under the umbrella of the ACT forum.

As the rains are expected to increase between the end of February and early April, the ACT forum, which met with church leaders and other NGOs on January 26, requested groups from member organisations that are trained in emergency preparedness, to assist with water treatment and sanitation measures to help communities in hygiene practices such as the handling of waste.

The ACT forum—the Reformed Evangelical Church of Angola (IERA), Norwegian Church Aid (NCA), the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), the Angolan Council of Christian Churches (CICA), Christian Aid (CA) and DanChurchAid (DCA)—has so far identified mosquito nets, food, tents, chlorine, iron sheets, domestic kits and clothes as needed immediately by people affected by the floods.

Luanda, the capital of the oil-rich country that is emerging from a 27-year civil war, has been hardest hit, especially in areas where former internally displaced persons (IDPs) live in fragile shelters without sanitation facilities and that offer no protection.

According to the ACT forum, thousands of IDPs are receiving humanitarian assistance at predefined reception centres in three areas that have been most affected in Luanda.

A report by the Government of Angola, posted to Reliefweb, puts the number of families left homeless by the floods at 10,0000 in Luanda. The government reports that it has started accommodating people in shelter camps that it has set up.

The National Council for Emergency has also set up measures to respond to the situation and has called on the public, humanitarian agencies and civil organisations to provide humanitarian assistance.

The Government has also undertaken to help families to bury family members. Recovery brigades made up of firemen, air-force and police members are still recovering bodies.

Cholera cases have surged to serious levels in Luanda, Huambo and Benguela, mainly due to people not having access to clean drinking water or to sewage facilities.

More than 500 cases have been diagnosed in Huambo, with 40 deaths reported and 19 patients still under care in hospital. Hundreds of cases have also been identified and treated in the local medical units.

The floods have also damaged roads and bridges, making communication in some areas difficult. Work continues to replace bridges, while communication is slowly being restored.

The ACT forum is currently gathering more information in the affected areas and will be submitting a proposal detailing the members' response soon.

The flooding has not been confined to Angola. In Mozambique, heavy rains have made many roads impassable, isolating district capitals from outlying localities. The situation according to Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Mozambique representative Philip Wijmans, is still under control, but if rains continue, he believes here will be more widespread flooding. The Mozambique ACT forum, which met on January 30, is monitoring the situation.

In Zambia, ACT members Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Zambia and the Council of Churches in Zambia (CCZ) have been in contact with the Government's Disaster Management Unit (DMU) regarding details of floods in the country. The DMU is compiling a consolidated report from all parts of the country that will be shared with all the stakeholders this week still.

The ACT forum in Zambia—DCA, NCA, LWF Zambia and CCZ—is monitoring the situation closely.

(ends)

ACT is a global alliance of churches and related agencies working to save lives and support communities in emergencies worldwide. The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland.

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