Floods in Ecuador

The phenomenon known as La Niña has left 20 dead in Ecuador, 61 in Bolivia and 13 in Peru, according to government sources in those countries. Action Against Hunger / Action Contre la Faim (ACF) has been working in the Santa Cruz department of Bolivia helping flood victims.

An Action Against Hunger team from Colombia arrived in Guayaquil on February 28th to carry out an initial evaluation of the damage caused by the floods in Ecuador. According to data from the Dartmouth Floods Observatory, the country’s five coastal provinces had experienced floods in recent months, affecting 315.000 people and destroying more than 217,000 hectares. 30% of crops were damaged and the rain continued throughout the month of March.

A team comprised of a head of mission, a logistician, a food security officer and a water and sanitation technician, was sent to one of the affected areas. “We still don’t know which region we are going to work in. We know that the regions of Manabi, Guayas and Los Rios have received most damage and, specifically in the last, more than 50,000 families have been affected” explained Patrice Chataigner, Head of Mission for the emergency pool of Action Against Hunger.

The meteorological phenomenon, La Niña, which is characterized by low temperatures and usually occurs approximately every four years, affected various countries of the Andean region, including Peru and Bolivia, resulting in a total of ninety deaths to date.

In Bolivia, according to the first evaluation carried out by Action Against Hunger’s team, more than 115,000 people have been affected by the swell of the Rio Grande. Meanwhile, in the Santa Cruz department, most of the sanitation infrastructure and wells have been inundated. The team sent to this area is already carrying out the initial tasks of drainage and emptying of latrines in order to avoid an outbreak of epidemics related to the lack of basic sanitation, such as cholera or other diseases linked to water quality. Today, 80% of disease in the world is related to the lack of potable water and basic sanitation.

To contribute to Ecuador and Bolivia, contact:

SCH 0049 / 0001 / 59 / 2810090000

CAJA MADRID 2038 / 1052 / 44 / 6000741510

LA CAIXA 2100 / 2999 / 93 / 0200030018

Reference: Flood Emergency

Further information and for interviews with a spokesman in the field, contact:

Alejandra Mahiques: 91 3915306 amahiques@achesp.org

Alicia García – 91 7711672 / 609018735 agarcia@achesp.org