IRI Climate Information Digest - Impacts September 1998 AGRICULTURE Excessive rains in northwestern India damage the cotton crop. Flooding in Bangladesh result in a doubling of grain shortfall to an estimated 4.3 million metric tons. Showers in Mexico brought relief to drought stricken corn growing areas. Heavy rains in eastern Australia cause concern of disease for winter grains In Kazakhstan, abnormally warm and dry conditions favored rapid harvesting of spring grains. FISHERIES Fisheries along the west coast of South America continue to suffer from the after effects of the 1997-1998 ENSO warm episode.  Reports cite a 58% in fishmeal production during the second quarter of 1998. Despite the return of the sea surface temperatures and thermocline to near average conditions estimated anchovy biomass (2.0 million metric tons) was at only 10% of average. Bangladesh floods damage 20% to 25% of the fisheries harvest with potential losses $50 million to $100 million in the shrimp harvest. HAZARDS/THREATS Hurricane Georges caused widespread damage and destruction with estimates of over 250 people killed in the Caribbean, at least 94 in Haiti and 125 in the Dominican Republic, and several thousands left without water and electricity.  The Dominican Republic reported over half the country without power, 500,000 homes damaged and 300,000 people displaced following the hurricane.  Puerto Rico suffered and estimated  $1 billion in damages.   In the United States Georges was responsible for the displacement of over a half million people fleeing the potential path the storm. Floods in Mexico, which displaced 23,000 people, were responsible for at least 183 deaths in Chiapas. Over 106,744 people reported homeless. CLIMATE AND HEALTH Floods in China are associated with outbreaks of hemorrahagic and snail fever. In Bangladesh an estimated 245,000 cases of diarrhea were reported with the potential for an epidemic. Vietnamese officials attributed persistent dry conditions to a 121% rise in dengue fever outbreaks (99,151 cases with 214 deaths).           Material for this portion of the IRI Climate Information Digest has been extracted from the IRI Climate Data Library - http://ingrid.ldeo.columbia.edu, the Climate Prediction Center, NCEP NOAA - http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov and the USDA/NOAA Joint Agricultural Weather Facility http://www.usda.gov/oce/waob/jawf and the Fishmeal Exporters Organization.  Additional information was derived from http://chge2.med.harvard.edu/enso/, the UN/OCHA http://wwwnotes.reliefweb.int/.