USAID SITUATION REPORT 2 HURRICANE DEAN

UNCLAS KINGSTON 001290 SIPDIS AIDAC SIPDIS DEPARTMENT PASS TO CARICOM COLLECTIVE DEPARTMENT ALSO PASS TO USAID/W USAID/W FOR A/AID HFORE LAC/AA FOR PBONICELLI DCHA/AA FOR MHESS, GGOTTLIEB DCHA/OFDA FOR KLUU, AFERRARA, ACONVERY, RTHAYER, SBISWAS STATE FOR WHA, CA, DS/IP/WHA, A, M/DGHR, PM, SMS, SES/O, TASKFORCE DEAN, CMS WHA/CAR FOR BMAJEWSKI, KHARNE, RBUDDEN DS/IP/SPC FOR JSPOO USSOUTHCOM FOR BVANICO SAN JOSE FOR TCALLAGHAN GENEVA FOR NKYLOH, RMA USUN FOR TMALEY NSC FOR PMARCHAM E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AEMR ASEC CASC KFLO MARR PREL PHUM EAID, PINR, AMGT, MX, CU, XL, XK, JM SUBJECT: USAID SITUATION REPORT 2 HURRICANE DEAN REFS: A) KINGSTON 1272 B) KINGSTON 1274 -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. Based on field assessments in five communities carried out on August 21, Hurricane Dean has killed at least three people, damaged thousands of houses, and left at least 3,500 people in need of food, water, and relief supplies in Jamaica. The USAID team believes that the number of affected will continue to rise as results from other field assessments become available. On August 21, USAID disaster response specialists joined field assessments led by the Government of Jamaica (GOJ) Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) to five severely affected communities. The team reported severe damage in the area of Old Harbour Bay in Saint Catherine Parish, where hurricane force winds demolished an estimated 80 percent of the houses and left thousands in need of relief assistance. Assessments will continue as long as needed. In response, USAID's Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) is providing a total of USD 250,000 to provide emergency health services and procure and transport plastic sheeting, blankets, hygiene kits, and water containers. The USAID assessment team in Kingston is planning to receive the airlift of relief commodities on August 22. End Summary. -------------- Field Assessments -------------- ¶2. Overall, disaster experts on Jamaica concur that Hurricane Dean did not damage infrastructure as severely as initially anticipated. ODPEM noted that while Hurricane Dean resembled Hurricane Ivan, which resulted in extensive damage to the island, Hurricane Dean hit Jamaica at a higher speed and did not linger over the island as long as Ivan did, resulting in less heavy rainfall, landslides, and storm surge activity. In 
addition, Jamaica disaster experts have observed that the improvements to Jamaica's infrastructure following the damage of Ivan held up well under Dean's hurricane force winds. However, several communities located closest to the hurricane's eyewall received strong winds that demolished buildings, in some cases leveling the entire structure. According to some assessments, wind- related damage in these areas exceeded that of Hurricane Ivan. ¶3. On August 21, members of the USAID assessment team joined the ODPEM-led field assessments to affected areas to ground truth observations made in the aerial assessments conducted on August 20. Representatives from ODPEM, USAID, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO),UN agencies, and the Jamaican Red Cross participated in the assessments. In eleven vehicles, including one of USAID's, the teams traveled to Old Harbour Bay, Rocky Point, Portland Cottage, Caribbean Terrace, and Bull Bay. --OLD HARBOUR BAY: The assessment team that visited Old Harbour Bay, located on the coast in Saint Catherine Parish, reported that between 2,500 and 3,500 people have had their homes destroyed and are in need of food, water, and relief items. The total population in the area is estimated at 7,000 people. In the eastern parts of the community, nearly 80 percent of the houses were completely destroyed. An estimated 10 to 20 percent of fisherfolk have lost their fishing boats. Most of the community members weathered the storm in shelters, but have begun returning to their homes to cleanup and rebuild shelters. The community members are burning dead animals to prevent the spread of disease and using sea water to cleanup. The team reported that there is up to 48 inches of standing water in some areas, creating the potential to transmit waterborne diseases and breed mosquitoes. During the storm, ocean waters surged an estimated 300 meters inland, flooding houses and damaging infrastructure. Many of the houses were flooded up to 3 or 4 feet with water during the storm. The community development association in the area has designated a church as the focal point for relief assistance distribution. ¶4. Reports from the other areas are expected to be received in the next 24 hours. The field assessments will continue on August 22 and the data collected will be analyzed in the coming days. Using the data gathered in the assessments, ODPEM may request additional assistance from the international community. Donors are awaiting the results from this two-day field assessment to determine further response to the disaster. -------------- OFDA Response -------------- ¶5. OFDA is airlifting plastic sheeting, water containers, hygiene kits, and blankets. In addition to the USD 100,000 already provided, OFDA plans to provide an additional USD 100,000 to PAHO for emergency health services in hurricane-affected areas in Jamaica. OFDA also plans to provide an additional USD 50,000 to USAID/Jamaica to support NGOs and other relief needs identified in upcoming damage assessments. In total, OFDA is providing USD 250,000 in response to Hurricane Dean to support emergency assistance in Jamaica. JOHNSON