$2.7 million for flood relief

[lkdood]

The European Union today said it would provide flood-stricken Sri Lanka with a USD 2.7-million humanitarian aid package.

The floods have claimed 23 lives and displaced almost one million people.

"My main concern for the future concerns the livelihood of those affected by the floods. These will affect their crops ... I fear the humanitarian impact of increasingly erratic weather," the EU's humanitarian aid commissioner Kristalina Georgieva said in a statement.

DM

 

[prasadana2]

oh great news... but im sure it will be stolen like the tsunami Money..

 

[lkdood]

Sri Lanka Flood Pictures

http://www.elakiri.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1047174

 

[lkdood]

UNICEF supplies arrive in flood-affected eastern part of Sri Lanka


A second consignment of UNICEF supplies arrived in the flood-affected eastern part of Sri Lanka today. These supplies are 4,961 hygiene kits (washing kits to last a family of five a month including towels, soap, toothpaste, washing powder), 10,000 plastic buckets, 15,000 sleeping mats, and 150 community cooking pots (150 litre capacity).

This second consignment of goods follows seven truck-loads of supplies sent by UNICEF to assist the one million people affected by the massive flooding. The first consignment comprised: 50 water tanks (1,000 litres each), water tablets able to purify two million litres of water, 7,000 tarpaulins, chlorine bleaching powder for equipment sterilising, 7,000 sleeping mats, 3,000 buckets, 30,000 bars of soap and cooking pots.

UNICEF's consignments have been handed over to local government officials who are working with the Sri Lankan military in order to distribute badly-needed goods to the displaced. The Batticaloa and Ampara districts are particularly badly hit.
Government reports state 27 people have been killed, 47 injured and more than 367,000 displaced by the floods.

No rain fell yesterday (Thursday, January 13) but rain is falling again today (Friday, Jan14).

These consignments of UNICEF support are part of a wider Government and UN effort to support the affected communities. As most roads are impassable by vehicle, the Sri Lankan military is using boats to deliver much-needed aid. The UN is preparing to launch an emergency fund-raising appeal.

reliefweb

 

[lkdood]

The US today said that it is in the process of helping and will further assist those affected by floods in Sri Lanka. US Ambassador Patricia A. Butenis announced that the United States Government is donating nearly $300,000 in assistance to provide a variety of goods and services to the people hardest hit by the flood disaster.

Further, a US press release noted -

“In order to help the nearly 1 million Sri Lankans affected by the recent floods and landslides, Ambassador Patricia A. Butenis announced that the United States Government is donating nearly $300,000 in assistance to provide a variety of goods and services to the people hardest hit by the disaster.

This aid has already provided boats to local governments in Batticaloa to evacuate people in the hardest-hit areas. We are also helping the government to identify the families in need and to make an accurate assessment of the situation. In addition, we are distributing emergency relief supplies—including bottled water, cooking materials, tarpaulins, and other necessary items—to thousands of families in Batticaloa, Trincomalee, and Ampara districts. The U.S. Government will continue to monitor the situation closely.”

 

[lkdood]

UN Sri Lanka floods appeal launched

The United Nations said it will launch an emergency appeal for funds to help those affected by floods that have ravaged Sri Lanka's east for days.

With vast rice fields that were ready for harvesting inundated, many have had their livelihoods disrupted.

UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Neil Buhne said in a statement that the United Nations will call for millions of dollars in aid to help replant the fields and compensate those who have lost money due to the floods.

As floodwaters slowly receded in the worst-hit Eastern Province, most people remain in temporary shelters.

However, some in Karaithivu village in eastern Ampara district came out for rituals marking the ethnic Tamils' traditional harvest festival.

UKPA

 

[lkdood]

More monsoon rain adds to Sri Lanka's agony

Unceasing monsoon rains have exacerbated the crisis facing more than a million people affected by Sri Lanka's deadly floods.

Aid agencies and the government are still battling to get supplies to large numbers of people cut off by rising waters in the east and centre of the country. So far at least 27 people have been killed. Aid groups warn that landslides are continuing and that many dams are set to burst.

As the rains continued after a brief lull, the government reported that more than 20 per cent of the country's rice crops had been destroyed, creating problems for Sri Lanka's longer-term food security.


"I would say the situation is pretty desperate," said Bob McKerrow, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross mission in Sri Lanka. "The immediate situation is that there are still people in the highland areas who remain cut off. We are trying to reach them with helicopters and boats."

In the capital, Colombo, President Mahinda Rajapakse told reporters that officials were still assessing the full extend of the damage caused by the second of Sri Lanka's two annual monsoons. "We are not sparing any costs," the president said. "The relief operations are going ahead and I have told the officials to ensure that there are no delays in distributing aid."

Aid groups said the worst hit areas were in the Eastern Province, a part of the country where people have recently been returning to their homes after having been driven away by decades of civil war.

independent