issue6 2006 english isdr informs part6

29 Disaster Reduction in Africa - ISDR Informs, Issue 6/December 2005 Mr . Ben Ch eikh & Mr . Amir Karihila National Directorate of Civil Protection, Moroni, Comoros Karthala volcano has again erupted on 24 November 2005 at around 1900 local time. Similar to that of 16 April 2005, the eruption occurred only inside the crater with no lava flowing outside. It, however, resulted in ashes and dust on most parts of the main island, Grande-Comore, especially in its central and southern parts. 2,000 people displaced Due to a lava pond developing inside the crater, a thick red eruption cloud appeared and persisted for three days above the crater. Because upward lava feed was taking place at the bottom of the crater – due probably to the emergence of a lava fountain, the earth tremor remained active with high amplitude for two whole weeks. Away from the volcano, dust was persistent on the ground, roads, buildings and trees tossed by the winds. As a result, some 2,000 panic-stricken villagers left their three villages. Some of the displaced persons took refuge at the Gendarmerie Station or the Emergency Operations Command Post, others at the INJS (National Institute fo r Y outh and Sports) and Moroni’s El-Marouf Hospital. Earlier, offici als of the Kart hala V olcano Monitoring Centre had predicted three scenarios: 1. End of earth tremor fo llowed by downward lava flow (through the lava tube) and end of eruption. 2 . Latera l fissu re follo wed by f lank eruption and lava flow. 3 . Lava ov erflowag e from t he crate r top – even though this last scenario was, from the outset, most unlikely because the crater is very deep (about 1,200 m). Emergency response On their return to their villages, the displaced persons had to deal with water that was not clean enough for consumption. The volcanic eruption also caused some damage followed by general slowing down of economic activities in several regions of the island. An evaluation work was carried out on the ground by the National Coordination (in charge of emergency management and supervision) made up of teams from the National Directorate of Health, Army Medical Services, the Red Crescent and UNICEF. The following list of needs was submitted to the government: 1. W ater: Draining and cleaning of public and private tanks; emergency supply of drinking water in affected regions. 2. Agricu lture & L ivestoc k Bree ding: Establishing a monitoring system; environmental impact assessment by experts. 3. Hygiene & Sanitation: Site cleaning operations; protection of people (dust inhalation); information and awareness campaigns. Efforts deployed by the Government of the Union of the Comoros during the emergency phase were supported by the UN System in the Comoros, the French and Chinese governments, and PIROI (Regional Intervention Platform for Indian Ocean, French Red Cross). The national emergency preparedness and response plan The National Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan, which became officially operational on 27 January 2005, was used for the first time during the 16 April 2005 volcanic eruption, which gave the Defence Ministry the opportunity of putting in place the above-mentioned National Coordination (NC). However , all the structur es forming the NC Permanent Command Post (for emergency operations) have encountered serious difficulties linked to lack of operating and transport means. For all these structures to be fully operational and effective, internal and external support is needed to strengthen their foundations for further development. In fact, civil protection officials in the Comoros are facing the following challenge: how to ensure that all the structures agreed are established fully, at national level and island level, to ensure adequate coordination of disaster reduction (DR) and its mainstreaming into national sustainable development. COMOROS: 2005 second volcanic eruption causes panic on main island Ashes and dust on Grande-Comore island ISDR National Platforms in Action

issue6 2006 english isdr informs part6

Documents