IRI Climate Information Digest - Impacts October 1999
HAZARDS/THREATS
-
India: More than 10.8 M people have been affected by a "super" cyclone
in the state of Orissa, with 250 km-per-hour winds and a storm surge up
to 30 meters high. It was the second cyclone to hit the east coast of India
in a two week period (OCHA).
-
Africa: Heavy rains since September have caused severe floods in
Ghana, affecting 290,000 people and 117,000 acres of farmland. In Togo
heavy rains and flooding have affected 65,000 people. (OCHA)
-
Mexico: Torrential rains have resulted in severe flooding.
In Veracruz, Puebla, Tabasco, Oaxaca and Hidalgo some 530,000 people
have been affected.(OCHA)
-
South America: The office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator
in Paraguay reports that Paraguay has been affected by progressively more
severe drought since June, with forecasts calling for warm and dry conditions
through the next season. 100,000 people have been affected by the drought
emergency.(OCHA)
HEALTH
-
India: In cyclone affected areas, with many communities having no
access to safe drinking water, the risk of gastroenteritis, malaria, acute
respiratory infections and other diseases is high.(OCHA)
-
Africa: Cholera outbreaks have been reported in the flooded regions
of Ghana, and the nutritional status of the affected population is becoming
a concern.(OCHA)
-
Mexico: Antibiotics, analgesics, surgical supplies and other medical
goods have been shipped for victims of flooding by Direct Relief International.(OCHA)
AGRICULTURE
-
South America: Hot, dry conditions hampered soybean planting in
southern Brasil early in the month. In Argentina, dry conditions reduced
topsoil moisture for reproductive wheat.
-
South Asia: Widespread heavy rains benefited summer crops but came
too late to help drought-stressed portions of western India. Reductions
in the rice harvest are anticipated as a result of the two recent cyclones.
OCHA reports 700,000 hectares of damaged crop area in Orissa.
-
Southeast Asia: Torrential rains slowed rice harvesting and possibly
damaged crops in the Philippines and north-central Vietnam.
-
Mexico: Heavy rains in the south delayed corn harvesting. Conitnued
rain exacerbated flooding, with 1.25 M hectares of crops and farmland affected.
-
Australia: Much needed rain benefited winter grains which are in
reproductive to filling stages in South Australia and Victoria.
FISHERIES
After approximately 3 months of a fishing ban on small pelagics, fishing
resumed in Peru on October 4. Official statistics have not been released,
but estimates of catch exceeding 500,000 metric tons are circulating. This
catch would bring the the 1999 cummulative landings to over 5 million metric
tons (in comparison with just over 2 million metric tons in 1998). Despite
the relatively high landings, many firms are complaining of financial hardships
due to accumulated debt (associated with the low catches of 1998, during
a strong El Niño).
|