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IRI Climate Information Digest - Impacts September 1999

          HEALTH

  • A  cholera outbreak in Ghana  is associated with heavy rains and flooding in the region (Reuters).
  • OCHA has reported an increase in malaria, malnutrition and diarrheal diseases due to flooding in Niger.
  • Outbreaks of dengue fever, malaria and cholera in several Central American countries have followed flooding in that area (Reuters).

          HAZARDS/THREATS

  • Localized flooding due to heavy rains was reported in Cameroon, Ghana, northern Senegal, and Niger.
  • Continuous, heavy rains and landslides affected southern Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua, causing flooding and resulting in at least 28 deaths with 16,000 people evacuated from their homes. Honduras and El Salvador are still recovering from the battering they received from Hurricane Mitch less than a year ago (Reuters, CNN).
  • After heavy rains in central and southern Chile, their National Weather Office declared an end to the 1998-1999 drought (Reuters).
  • Tropical storm Wendy hit the central coast of China and storms York and Cam pounded Hong Kong. Also in China forest fire prevention was stressed by the State Forestry Administration due to warm, dry conditions in the northeast (CNN, Reuters).
  • Hurricane Floyd resulted in widespread damages from the Carolinas to the northeast U.S., estimated total losses are greater than $6 Billion (AP).

    • AGRICULTURE

  • Drought continued to stress oil seeds, cotton and coarse grains in western India while scattered showers near the end of the month benefited late developing summer crops.
  • After a prolonged warm, dry period in the North China Plain, rain increased topsoil moisture for winter wheat planting. Frosts in northern Manchuria possibly damaged immature corn.
  • Rains boosted soil moisture for vegetative winter wheat in central Argentina.
  • Dry weather in the Ukraine and Southern Russia was favorable for fieldwork and summer crop harvesting and winter grain grain planting.
  • In the U.S. agricultural losses resulting from hurricane Floyd are estimated to be greater than $1 Billion. Peanut and cotton crops from North Carolina through Virginia were most vulnerable to damage.  The Ohio valley and the Tennessee valley, however, remained in drought conditions with concern for winter grain planting.

          FISHERIES

  • The catch of small pelagics off the Peruvian coast continues to be restricted due to the regular seasonal ban.
Material for this portion of the IRI Climate Information Digest has been extracted from the IRI Climate Data Library, the NOAA NCEP Climate Prediction Center, the USDA/NOAA Joint Agricultural Weather Facility and the Fishmeal Exporters Organization. Additional information was obtained from the CHGE, and the UN/OCHA.