More than 2,200 people have received relief supplies after floods occurred in the states of Bolívar, Sucre and Táchira. (Government, 8 May and 11 May 2012)

A severe drought is affecting more than 1,100 towns in northeastern Brazil, where short water supplies have devastated farm output, endangering the lives of local people and their livestock. 'Water wars' are observed in rural areas. (AFP, 13 May 2012)

Useful Links

• Secretaria Nacional de Defesa Civil
• Reuters video 'Brazil's northeast struggles with drought'

The central and eastern parts of Georgia were severely affected by rains on 12 and 13 May 2012. Multiple landslides followed the heavy rains, and at least five people were killed in the capital city of Tbilisi. Over 3,200 families have been affected and out of them 1,400 have had their property badly damaged. Mudslide and water flooded houses, agricultural lands, roads, bridges, drainage channels, water pipes and disrupted communication networks. (IFRC, 16 May 2012)

Since early May 2012 hailstorms have struck across the central province of Hunan, affecting 3,42 million people. In Gansu province, at least 40 were killed and more than 29,000 were evacuated after a violent hailstorm and torrential rain swept through Min county. (AFP, 13 May 2012)

On 5 May 2012, a landslide near Machhapuchhre mountain in Kaski district triggered a catastrophic flash flood in the Seti river, sweeping settlements and breaching the river banks downstream. As of 10 May, 26 bodies have been recovered and 51 people are reported missing. 20 houses, two temples, and a community building have been completely swept away by the flooding and two water supply systems were damaged. (OCHA, 10 May 2012)

Useful Links

• UN Nepal Information Platform

In 2011/2012, Kyrgyzstan experienced a harsh winter with unusually low temperatures, heavy snowfall and high precipitation, which exceeded the annual average by 2-2.5 times. Melting snow and heavy rains caused mudflows and flash floods across the country. Food stocks, home properties, livelihoods and infrastructure were heavily damaged.

A series of mudflows occurred on the territory of Naryn, Osh, Jalalabad and Batken regions including remote districts throughout April. The most destructive flash floods hit Osh, Batken and Jalalbad between 23-29 Apr 2012, affecting more than 9,400 people. (IFRC, 04 May 2012)

Since 20 Apr 2012, the Islands of Comoros have been battered by torrential rains, which caused heavy floods, landslides and rockslides. Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli islands are significantly affected with water supply, electricity and telecommunications services cut off as well as the market functionality disrupted. Four people were killed and an estimated 150 injured; over 57,000 people are affected. Around 10,000 people are displaced in temporary shelters and hosted by relatives. (UN Country Team, 12 May 2012)

Appeals & Funding

• IFRC Flash Floods Emergency appeal n° MDRKM004

Useful Links

• Présidence de l'Union des Comores

At least 11,150 people were displaced and almost 3,000 houses were damaged by floods in several provinces in the north and northeast of the country (Government, 25 Apr 2012).

Two people were killed and more than 4,500 houses damaged as hailstorms and whirlwinds struck the northern provinces of Lao Cai, Bac Kan and Tuyen Quang on 20 Apr 2012. Subsidiary crop areas were also destroyed (Government, 23 Apr 2012).

Useful Links

• Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control (CCFSC)
• Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment - Hydro-meteorology
• National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting
• Viet Nam Red Cross Society

Heavy rains occurred in Sange, Territoire d'Uvira in South Kivu, killing one person and destroying crop fields, more than 3,000 houses and 8 schools (OCHA, 23 Ar 2012).

On 12 Apr 2012, heavy rains in Musanze Northern Province, and Nyabihu and Rubavu districts in Western Province of Rwanda have led to flooding causing extensive damage to houses and property. According to the Rwanda Red Cross and government local authorities, an estimated 2,200 households, or 11,000 people, have been affected. 348 houses were destroyed, 446 were damaged or are still flooded. (IFRC, 1 May 2012)

At least 13,654 families have been affected by floods after heavy rains caused river overflows in the Chaco region (Government, 21 Apr 2012).

According to the assessment conducted by the Russian Red Cross, 957 families (2,406 people) are considered to be affected by the floods in the Volgograd region of Russia. Emergency situation status was announced in the Elansky, Rudnyansky and Kamylzhensky districts. (IFRC, 26 Apr 2012)

In Mordovia, 1,128 houses are flooded due to high water level in the rivers Alatyr, Seitma and Moksha (Government, 23 Apr 2012).

Heavy rains since early April 2012 have caused flash floods across the country, killing 42 people and displacing over 20,000. Almost 60,000 people are at risk of displacement since they reside in areas that are historically either flood or landslide prone. Excessive rainfall is expected to continue into May 2012. (IFRC, 8 May 2012)

Useful Links

• Kenya Meteorological Department
• Kenya Red Cross Society

A wind and rain storm shook the Buenos Aires area on 4 Apr 2012, killing 17 people and damaging between 25,000 and 30,000 homes (Government, 9 Apr 2012).

On 31 Mar 2012, a tornado accompanied by heavy winds, rain and hail hit zone 1 of Menik Farm, an IDP camp in Northern Sri Lanka. Out of a total of 1,200 shelters, 942 were damaged and over 20 people were injured. (OCHA, 3 Apr 2012)

Local authorities supported by the humanitarian agencies provided rapid assistance and re-established shelter and WASH facilities to ensure that basic needs were met. By 9 Apr, the situation had returned to normal. (OCHA, 9 Apr 2012)

Useful Links

• Humanitarian Portal - Sri Lanka
• Disaster Management Center, Ministry of Disaster Management

Continuous rain started on 30 Mar 2012, first caused by tropical depression TD17F and then by Tropical Cyclone Daphne, which passed at distance. The rains caused widespread flooding in the western division from Rakiraki to Sigatoka and prompted the Government to declare a state of natural disaster (Govt of Fiji, 1 Apr 2012).

At the height of the flood, 15,000 people took shelter in evacuation centers. Most of them returned to their homes after several days. At least 96 houses were destroyed, and almost 200 people remain in an evacuation center as of 24 Apr. (OCHA, 25 Apr 2012)

Useful Links

• Pacific Humanitarian Team
• Fiji Government Online Portal
• Fiji National Disaster Management Office
• Fiji Meteorological Service
• Fiji Red Cross Society

As part of an early start to the rainy season, torrential rains battered the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince on 28 Mar 2012, killing six people in Morne Calvaire following landslides. Almost 65,000 displaced people still living in camps are at risk of flooding. Five camps already suffered considerable damage. (OCHA, 2 Apr 2012)

Heavy rains in the Nord and Nord-Ouest departments of Haiti on 8 and 9 Apr resulted in six deaths, flooding of houses and crops, as well as loss of livestock (OCHA, 11 Apr 2012).

Useful Links

Humanitarian Response Haiti

More than 66,000 people have been affected by floods in 28 out of 32 departments, during the first six weeks of this year's first rainy season (Government, 23 Apr 2012).

Useful Links

• Sistema Nacional para la Prevención y Atención de Desastres (SINPAD)
• Cruz Roja Colombiana
• Información sobre afectación por desastres naturales en Colombia en tiempo real

The state of Rio de Janeiro has declared a dengue epidemic with 64,423 cases confirmed and 13 deaths so far this year (AFP, 25 Apr 2012).

Tropical Storm Irina killed at least 65 people, most of them residents of the Ifanadiana district in the southeast of Madagascar, and affected more than 70,000. (AFP, 06 Mar 2012)

In Mozambique, the storm passed the coastal areas of Gaza and Maputo provinces, damaging 29 schools, 2 health centers and 68 houses (UNCT, 9 Mar 2012).

Useful Links

• BNGRC (Bureau National pour la Gestion des Risques et Catastrophes)
• Croix-Rouge Malagasy
• Portal do Governo de Moçambique
• Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia - Moçambique
• Cruz Vermelha de Moçambique

On 4 Mar 2012 a fire caused a series of explosions in the arms depot of the Congolese National Army in Brazzaville resulting in the devastation of the surrounding neighbourhoods and 246 deaths, up to 2,200 people injured, and the displacement of an estimated 13,800 people (IFRC, 26 Mar 2012).

Useful Links

An outbreak of cholera in three districts of Sierra Leone (Kambia and Port Loko in the North and Pujehun in the South) has claimed 34 lives according to the Ministry of Health and Sanitation. As of 9 Mar 2012, the number of confirmed cholera cases in these districts stood at 2,137. This outbreak and spread is related to insanitary conditions, acute water shortage in many parts of the country, and migration from affected regions. (IFRC, 20 Mar 2012)

Useful Links

Ministry of Health & Sanitation

Over 4,300 measles cases and 155 deaths were officially reported in Yemen between January 2011 and March 2012, with 95 per cent of deaths reported since the beginning of 2012. The steep increase in measles incidents is due to the decline in immunization coverage and disruption in access to basic social services in most parts of the country during the civil unrest. Mortality due to measles is already very high and will increase further, especially if compounded with a rise in acute watery diarrhoea and increasing rates of malnutrition. (OCHA, 8 Mar 2012, OCHA, 5 Apr 2012)

In Apr 2012, a national measles campaign targeting over 8.2 million children (6 months to 10 years) achieved a coverage rate of 94 per cent and resulted in the number of reported measles cases falling to 106, with zero deaths (UNICEF, 1 May 2012).

Large parts of the occupied Palestinian territories were hit by exceptionally heavy storms from 28 Feb onward, which caused major damage to houses located in the districts of Gaza, Hebron, Jenin, Salfit, Ramallah and the Jerusalem area beyond the separation wall. More than 300 families were evacuated due to flooding. (IFRC, 12 Mar 2012)

Useful Links

• OCHA in oPt
• Palestine Red Crescent Society

Quick snow melting and plentiful precipitation at the end of February and in March 2012 caused floods in the South-Kazakhstan region – the most densely populated region near the border with Uzbekistan. By 11 Mar, the floods spread to nine districts of the region (out of 11) affecting the population of more than 100 settlements. More than 3,820 evacuated people (660 families), who cannot return to their houses, found shelter with their relatives. According to the reports of the Ministry of Emergencies, 2,029 households and 14 public buildings (including three schools and four hospitals) were flooded in total. As a result, 14 houses, 28 outbuildings and 31 bridges were totally destroyed; 81 km of roads were washed out; 85 houses and 197 outbuildings were severely damaged and made uninhabitable. (IFRC, 3 Apr 2012)

In Ghor and Baghdis provinces, the Ministry of Public Health and WHO reported twenty confirmed child mortality cases due to measles and pneumonia. The outbreak is compounded by severe weather that hampers access, and low immunization and poor public health service coverage contribute to the spread of measles (WHO, 21 Feb 2012).

Torrential rains have been falling in most localities of the Central African Republic (CAR) since 15 Feb 2012. The situation deteriorated over the weekend of 18 to 19 Feb as violent winds occurred, causing serious human casualties and material damages in Bogoula, Amada-Gaza and Mbaïki. (IFRC, 02 Mar 2012)

Heavy rains have caused river overflows, affecting thousands of people in the Arica y Parinacota, Tarapacá and Magallanes regions (Government, 13 Mar 2012).

Useful Links

• Ministerio del Interior y Seguridad Pública
• Las consecuencias de las precipitaciones en el sur del país (Video CNN Chile)

Since October 2011 the incidence of dengue has increased very rapidly in all departments but Potosí and Oruro. Sixteen (16) deaths have so far been reported (PAHO, 15 Feb 2012).

Useful Links

Ministerio de Salud