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Interview: Sierra Leone in dire need of emergency humanitarian aid after mudslide disaster: presidential spokesperson

FREETOWN, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- Sierra Leone's presidential spokesperson Abdulai Bayraytay said Wednesday that the country is in dire need of food, water, clothing, accommodation and medical supplies for the thousands of people left homeless by the devastating floods and mudslide that hit an area on the outskirts of capital city Freetown on Monday.

Bayraytay, who also doubles as lead communicator for the disaster management in Sierra Leone, told Xinhua in an interview they have temporarily provided shelter for the homeless in various schools across the city and that they are currently providing dry food rations for people that were affected by the disaster, but more supplies are needed.

"We need water facility, clothing, medicine, food and accommodation for people that have been left homeless," he said, as work to rescue and recover people suspected to be buried under the rubble is still under way.

"We are still very optimistic that as the recovery effort still continues, we would discover more people. That is why we have ambulances on standby, so that whosoever we discover would be taken to the nearest hospital," the spokesperson said.

He said registration of people suspected to have been victimized by the disaster is still in progress, although he could not provide an update on the latest death toll figures.

He told Xinhua that the government is particularly concerned about any outbreak of cholera in the aftermath of the disaster, hence medical supplies would be direly needed by the government.

"We are very much concerned about any outbreak of cholera. So, whatever medical supplies we get would be greatly appreciated," he said.

Deputy Minister of Health and Sanitation, Madina Rahman, has earlier cautioned people to apply all precautionary measures to avoid catching up with Cholera or any other waterborne diseases .

A release from State House late Tuesday indicated that 83 women, 105 men and 109 children were reported dead during the disaster. As rescue operation is still in progress, the number is expected to rise as more bodies are being transported to the Connaught Hospital Mortuary in Freetown.

According to Baraytay, the government and development partners have deployed social workers in the affected communities to provide psychosocial treatment for affected people.

More relatives on Wednesday have identified some of their loved ones killed by the disaster. Bayraytay said that the burial process would take place at waterloo in the outskirt of Freetown Thursday.

New Zealanders better prepared for disasters: survey

WELLINGTON, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- New Zealanders have never been better prepared for disasters, according to an annual disaster preparedness survey released on Tuesday.

Levels of household preparedness for disasters have risen sharply since the Kaikoura earthquake last November, followed by a string of other emergencies such as the Port Hills fires in Christchurch and the Edgecumbe flooding in the Bay of Plenty, Minister of Civil Defence Nathan Guy said in a release.

Current levels of preparedness are on par with the previous highest on record, which was following the Canterbury earthquakes in 2010 and 2011, Guy said.

The results are the findings of the disaster preparedness survey for 2017, conducted by Colmar Brunton, a social research company, which has been released by the Ministry of Civil Defence & Emergency Management.

The survey shows that 83 percent of respondents know that they needed to evacuate when a long or strong earthquake happens near the coast.

Some Indonesian districts not on emergency alert for forest fires despite hotspots

JAKARTA: Despite the detection of hotspots, some districts in Indonesia have yet to be on emergency alert for forest fires, said Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) on Sunday (Aug 6).

In a statement, BNPB said the districts include those in Kapuas Hulu, Sanggau, Sintang and Landak - all in the West Kalimantan province.

West Kalimantan, however, declared an emergency alert status on a provincial level on Jul 26.

Satellite images from the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) on Sunday showed there were a total of 282 hotspots across Indonesia, with 150 of them in West Kalimantan.

Hotspots were also detected in other provinces considered fire-prone areas - South Sumatra had 23, Riau 16 and Jambi with two.

BNPB said forest fires started to appear in the Ogan Ilir regency of the South Sumatra province on Saturday. The agency deployed four helicopters to the region to conduct water bombing operations.

It added that districts that have many groups adopting the Fire Awareness Community and Village Disaster Mitigation programmes have managed to reduce hotspots this year.

"On the other hand, districts with few groups following the programmes have seen many hotspots appear in their area. This shows areas with low monitoring capability are more prone to forest fires," said BNPB spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.

The peak of the dry season is expected to last until September and the threat of forest fires may increase.

Source: CNA/aa

President Approves Disaster Declaration for Recent Flooding in Michigan

(TNS) - Today, President Donald Trump approved a major disaster declaration for Midland, Bay, Gladwin and Isabella counties along with the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe within Isabella County after the area experienced severe flood damage from storms on June 22-23.

“The losses sustained by these communities have been severe due to the magnitude of the flash flooding,” Gov. Rick Snyder said. “This presidential declaration is an important step in our continuing efforts to provide assistance and help Michigan families and businesses recover from the effects of this disaster.”

The decision releases federal funds for state and local governments to use in disaster recovery efforts and to help reduce the risk of such an event in the future. In addition, the disaster declaration makes individual assistance available to the families still recovering from recent flooding.

U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar welcomed the president's decision.

"State and local governments in mid-Michigan have done an outstanding job in the aftermath of June's flooding, but the cost of cleanup and recovery was more than they could bear alone," Moolenaar said. "Today's decision to grant federal assistance from FEMA will go a long way toward helping communities and families rebuild."

Individuals seeking assistance in the formal disaster area can register with FEMA by visiting www.DisasterAssistance.gov or calling 1-800-621-3362. Those who have a speech disability or hearing loss and use TTY, should call 1-800-462-7585 directly; for those who use 711 or Video Relay Service, call 1-800-621-3362.

With this declaration, communities statewide are now eligible to participate in the hazard mitigation assistance program that can help reduce or eliminate long-term risk to people and property from natural hazards. Mitigation measures reduce personal loss, save lives and lessen the cost of responding to and recovering from future disasters.

“I strongly encourage communities to seize the opportunity for hazard mitigation assistance to enhance the safety of Michigan’s residents,” said Capt. Chris A. Kelenske, commander of the Michigan State Police, Emergency Management and Homeland Security Division. “With federal aid, our communities can initiate projects to save lives and protect public property and health.”

In addition to the presidential declaration for public assistance and hazard mitigation assistance, the U.S. Small Business Administration has made low-interest disaster loans available to residents and businesses in Bay, Gladwin, Isabella and Midland counties. Additional information about the SBA disaster assistance program is available at www.sba.gov.

The presidential declaration does not include assistance for costs incurred by state and local governments due to damage to public facilities and infrastructures because those costs did not meet the federal threshold for assistance. However, Snyder has opened the state’s Disaster and Emergency Contingency Fund, which allows eligible local governments affected by the flooding to apply for assistance grants for up to $100,000 or 10 percent of the previous year’s operating budget, whichever is less.

Disaster preparedness now part of school curriculum

CEBU, Philippines - The disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) has been institutionalized through its integration into the school curriculum.

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The Department of Education and the Commission on Higher Education in Central Visayas have incorporated disaster risk reduction and management in their curricula.

Section 14 of the Republic Act 10121 (or the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010) requires DepEd, CHED, and Tesda to integrate disaster risk education in school curricula.

The law said DepEd and CHED have an important part to play in the country’s approach to DRRM.

DepEd and CHED officials agreed, saying students and teachers must be equipped with knowledge on mitigating and managing hazards and risks brought by natural disasters like earthquakes.

Victor Yntig, DepEd-7 Administrative Division chief, said the topics about disasters from basic information to disaster management have already been incorporated into the curricula of elementary and senior high school students.

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For elementary and junior high school, DRRM education is not a school subject itself but only a component of subjects like science and technology, and social science.

But DepEd made DRRM education as an independent subject for senior high school students.

Yntig said disaster preparedness and management education has been reinforced through programs and projects spearheaded by non-government agencies and the local government units.

He said experts from these agencies provide orientation and training on disaster mitigation and preparedness, as well as distribute DRRM manuals to students and school faculty members.

He said these initiatives started after the provinces of Bohol and Cebu were hit by the 7.2 magnitude earthquake and super typhoon Yolanda in 2013.

Aside from trainings and seminars, Yntig said, schools are directed to conduct hazard drills quarterly.

He said students should have knowledge on what to do during certain disasters like earthquakes.

On the other hand, college and university students are further capacitated through civic education and defense preparedness program.

Dr. Freddie Bernal, CHED-7 regional director, said disaster mitigation, preparedness and management is among the topics being taught to students through the National Service Training Program (NSTP).

He said all institutions are required to organize their respective disaster responders.

RA 10121 mandates local DRRM bodies to “encourage community, specifically the youth, participation in disaster risk reduction and management activities, such as organizing quick response groups, particularly in identified disaster-prone areas, as well as the inclusion of disaster risk reduction and management programs as part of youth programs and projects.”

Recently, CHED-7 partnered with the University of San Carlos in facilitating the training and workshop on the disaster response participated by NSTP directors and coordinators held in Barangay Talamban, Cebu City.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) earlier reported that Cebu would not be spared from experiencing strong earthquakes with the presence of “potentially active faults” in the province.

PHIVOLCS executive has asserted that every locality in the country will experience its own "big one,” referring to quakes with intensity eight, thus the need to intensify preparedness to mitigate risks. (FREEMAN)