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In Brief
CHF 31,364 HAS BEEN ALLOCATED FROM THE FEDERATION'S DISASTER RELIEF EMERGENCY FUND (DREF) TO ASSIST SOME 54 HOUSEHOLDS FOR 3 MONTHS AND FOR RECONSTRUCTION OF DAMAGED STRUCTURES.
UNEARMARKED FUNDS TO REPAY DREF ARE ENCOURAGED.
The situation
On 5 December 2005 a strong earthquake struck the Lake Tanganyika region. The tremor was rated as the largest in a century ever to occur around the lake. According to reports by the French Observatory of Earth Sciences, the epicenter was Lake Tanganyika, at around 6.9 degrees on the southern latitude and 30.8 degrees on the eastern longitude near the Tanzanian village of Sibwesa. The US geological survey website reported that the quake was located 6 miles below the surface and its strength measured 6.8 on the Richter scale. The tremor, which occurred at around 15:20 hrs in Kigoma region of western Tanzania, and lasted for less than a minute, caused injuries and panic in the affected areas.
Buhingu division, in Kigoma rural district, was most affected by the tremor. It has a population of 54,116 people including children and women who form about 20% and 52% of the population respectively. 5,000 people, or 9.2% of the total population, were affected. One boy aged 8 years was killed in Kalilani village when the wall of their house collapsed and one woman aged 65 years old sustained a femur fracture in Sibwesa village. A total of 54 houses completely collapsed while 705 houses had cracked walls in eleven villages; a dispensary and one medical staff house walls cracked at Sibwesa village; 5 health staff houses walls cracked at Buhingu health centre; 20 school classrooms walls cracked (one at Kalilani primary school, four at Buhingu primary school, six at Mugambo primary school and nine at Nkokwa Primary School); one water tank collapsed at Buhingu Secondary School; six latrines collapsed at Buhingu secondary school collapsed; one mosque completely collapsed in Kalilani village; two mosques, one in Nkokwa and one in Buhingu, had cracked walls; a police station building walls cracked in Kalya village.
Further, there are risks of increased endemic diseases due to congestion for families hosting the victims as well as psychological stress due to disrupted livelihoods.
Red Cross and Red Crescent action taken so far
The Tanzania Red Cross Society, with financial support from the Spanish Red Cross country office, organised a preliminary assessment mission to the affected area, which the government participated in.
The national society appealed for financial support to the Federation through the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) CHF 31,364 was allocated to assist the affected households with essential non food items (NFI) and other highlighted needs.
The needs
Non food items
The rainy season, which ends in late May or early June 2006, has begun in western Tanzania. As most of the houses in the affected area are made from mud bricks and grass-thatched roofs, this means that the families whose houses completely collapsed will not manage to reconstruct them during the rainy season. They cannot fabricate mud bricks or get grass for roofing. Children in particular need to be protected from getting pneumonia, acute respiratory infection and other disease related to cold and harsh conditions. The disrupted lives of the 54 families have prevented them from engaging in farming and fishing activities.
Objective 1: To provide emergency temporary shelter (tarpaulins) and essential household items to 54 affected households for 3 months.
Expected results:
Semi-permanent dwellings have been established for the 54 vulnerable households.
No cases of pneumonia in children have been reported.
Objective 2: To maintain the physical well being, health status and environmental hygiene of the affected through the reconstruction and repair of damaged homes, latrines and water tank(s).
Expected results:
Permanent and safe dwellings have been established for the affected.
Water and sanitation facilities in one secondary school and six primary schools have been restored to a useable condition.
Budget outline
| Item | Quantity | Unit price | Total cost in CHF |
| Blankets for 54 families | 162 pieces | 4.92 | 797.04 |
| Plastic sheeting (tarpaulins) for 54 families | 54 pieces | 17.4496 | 942.2784 |
| Laundry soap | 648 bars | 0.656 | 425.088 |
2,164.41 | |||
| Fabrication of slabs for 54 families | 54 | 13.120 | 708.48 |
| Rehabilitation of damaged latrines | 6 | 574 | 3,444.00 |
| Rehabilitation of water tank | 1 | 5,745 | 5,745 |
| Construction materials | 98 pieces of iron bars | 11.152 | 1,092.896 |
147 bags of cement | 10.7584 | 1,581.4848 | |
196 paint tins | 26.24 | 5,143.04 | |
17,714.90 | |||
| Transport costs (hiring boats 12 ton capacity) | 4 boats | 2,361.6 | 9,446.40 |
| Sub total | 29,326.05 | ||
| 6.5% PSR | 1,906.19 | ||
| GRAND TOTAL | 31,231.90 | ||
Coordination
Given the remoteness of the affected area and its poor accessibility it was not easy to access reliable information about the situation in a timely manner. This necessitated the intervention of the Tanzania Red Cross Society with financial support from the Spanish Red Cross, in organising an assessment mission comprising of representatives from the local government authorities who travelled for more than 20 hours to reach the affected area by a hired boat.
The national society team members included the logistics officer and the assistant medical officer based in Kigoma region branch, while the district administrative officer and the district development and social welfare officer represented the government. The government also provided police escort during travel from Kigoma town to the affected areas. At community level, the respective community leaders and other key personnel were contacted during the assessment.
For information specifically related to this operation please contact:
In Tanzania: Adam Kimbisa, Secretary General, Tanzania Red Cross National Society, Dar-es-Salaam; Email logistics@raha.com; Phone 255.22.215.0330; Fax 255.22.215.0147
In Kenya: Esther Okwanga, Federation Head of East Africa Sub-Regional Office; Email: esther.okwanga@ifrc.org; Phone +254.20.283.50.00; Fax +254.20.271.27.77
In Kenya: Anitta Underlin, Federation Head of Regional Delegation, Nairobi; Email: anitta.underlin@ifrc.org; Phone +254.20.283.51.24; Fax +254.20.271.27.77 and Steve Penny, Disaster Management Coordinator, East Africa Regional Delegation, Nairobi; Email: steve.penny@ifrc.org;Phone +254.20.283.5117; Fax +254.20.271.27.77
In Geneva: Amna Al Ahmar, Federation Regional Officer for Eastern Africa, Africa Dept; Email: amna.alahmar@ifrc.org; Phone +41.22.730.4224 ; Fax +41.22.733.03.95
All International Federation assistance seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's) in Disaster Relief and is committed to the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response (Sphere) in delivering assistance to the most vulnerable.
For longer-term programmes in this or other countries or regions, please refer to the Federation's Annual Appeal. For support to or for further information concerning Federation programmes or operations in this or other countries, or for national society profiles, please also access the Federation's website athttp://www.ifrc.org