Stories about Disaster from January, 2009
Flashfloods and landslides in south Philippines
More than 115,000 people in the Philippines’ northern Mindanao region had fled to safety due to flashfloods and landslides. The local government reported that the series of flashfloods that struck the region have reached humanitarian crisis proportions
Malaysia: Worst flooding in years
Malaysia’s State of Sarawak suffered from severe flooding last week. The two hardest hit areas were Kuching and Sibu. Almost 10,000 people were forced to move to higher ground because of rising water level. In some parts of the state, flood waters rose to 14 feet.
Indonesia: Flooding in 13 provinces
Thirteen Indonesian provinces experienced flooding the past week due to torrential rains. The disaster has claimed the lives of 14 people while three others are still missing. More than 50,000 people have to be evacuated. Jakarta, Indonesia’s capital, is under up to two meters of water.
Palestine: “Everything is in vain in Gaza – breathing, running, hoping”
In this roundup of blogs from Gaza, we hear in detail about the attacks on Al Quds hospital in the Tel al-Hawa neighbourhood of Gaza City from an Australian activist who was in it at the time, and an Italian activist describes a man lying injured in hospital, unaware that...
Barbados: Collapse Caused by Negligence
About a year and a half after this apartment collapse, an earth and atmospheric sciences expert concludes that the tragedy was caused by “gross negligence”. Barbados Free Press is calling for a proper inquest.
Costa Rica: After the Earthquake
A week has passed since the 6.2 Earthquake in Costa Rica, and on blogger and twitter people have been commenting on the aftermath, analyzing the relief efforts, the rescue operations and the media's coverage of the events. Blogger and journalist Cristian Cambronero of Fusil de Chispas has been updating regularly...
Fiji Floods: ‘The Village Drowned’
The rains in Fiji began falling January 7 and didn't let up for more than a week. Nearly 10,000 people are being housed in shelters and damage to homes, crops and businesses could climb to hundreds of millions of dollars.
Palestine: Israeli Troops Enter Residential Areas of Gaza City
Thousands of Palestinians have been fleeing from Gaza City as IDF troops have entered residential areas. A number of the foreign activists in Gaza were helping at Al Quds hospital when it came under attack, and managed to get out reports of what was going on. We hear from them and other bloggers in this roundup of Gaza blogs by Ayesha Saldanha.
Fiji Flooding: “The economic costs will be massive”
The sun peeked from behind the mass of clouds in parts of the Fiji island group Thursday morning, marking the first time many places had a major break in rain in more than a week. With the respite, the worst flood waters in decades have mostly subsided across Viti Levu,...
Palestine: “I don't have guns or weapons. I struggle by telling the truth”
In this roundups of blogs from Gaza, we hear how an ambulance driver deals with his fear, the effect of the warning announcements made by the IDF on local TV and radio stations – and how the possibility of leaving Gaza is the only thing giving an NGO worker the strength to go on.
Costa Rica: Taking Advantage of Disasters to Make Money
During the recent earthquake in Costa Rica, a helicopter company charged 1700 dollars to rescue trapped tourists. Juan Carlos Hidalgo writes that at first he was disgusted by high fee, but then he said if it wasn't for the company then the tourists would still be trapped [es].
Costa Rica: Cancelling the Palmares Festival
Fusil de Chispas [es] asks whether the famous Palmares Festival in Costa Rica should be cancelled because of national mourning for the victims of the recent earthquake.
Jordan: Help needed in sending aid to Gaza
Jordanian Ali Dahmash says more volunteers are needed to help with organising parcels of aid to Gaza. “Donations are still coming from Jordan, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Syria. Yesterday we unloaded 3 trucks that arrived from Dubai and there are still 25 on the way. The whole process is complicated...
Palestine: “Tell me, please God, tell me this is going to end soon”
The Israeli aerial attacks on Gaza show no sign of relenting, and in Gaza City there is now street fighting. In this post bloggers describe the fear experienced when Israeli soldiers arrive in the neighbourhood, explain how important prayer has become, and emphasise the need to keep telling the world what is going on.
Egypt: Help Gaza Patients Remain in Touch with Loved Ones
Egyptian blogger Mostafa Hussein continues to urge his readers to donate phone credit to enable injured Palestinians from Gaza being treated in Egyptian hospitals to remain in touched with family back home using their mobile phones. He posts more instructions on how to do that in this post.
Madagascar: More Prison Break: Arson in Ambalatavoahangy (Toamasina)
After a series of prison breaks around Madagascar last week, Jentilisa reports that another prison near Toamasina ( East coast of Madagascar) was set on fire today ( Jan 13th) (mg). Eyewitnesses reported heavy smoke and 5 gun shots. The causes of the fire or the gun shots are still...
Senior citizen sets on fire a Singapore lawmaker
Politicians should be more careful these days. Angry citizens are using extraordinary measures to express their rage against leaders. Last month a journalist from Iraq threw his shoes at U.S. President George Bush. Last Sunday, a 70 year old taxi driver lit a bottle of kerosene and threw it at Singapore lawmaker Seng Han Thong in a community club.
Russia-Georgia: Red Cross viewpoint
Krusenstern discusses [GER] the civilian consequences of the Russo-German war from the perspective of a recent ICRC-official's reflections.
Morocco: Gaza Injured in Morocco Hospitals
Palestinians injured in the ongoing war on Gaza have been flown in to Morocco, where they are being treated at the Mohammmed V Military hospital, reports The View from Fez.
Morocco: Three Killed in Fez Fire
From Morocco, The View from Fez reports on a fire which killed three people and injured several others in a warehouse specialising in manufacturing ceramics.
From Italy to Palestine: Vittorio Arrigoni writes from Gaza
Vittorio Arrigoni is an Italian human rights activist who is currently in Gaza, one of a number of activists who arrived with the Free Gaza movement. Vittorio (Vik) blogs at Guerrilla Radio [it], and also writes for the Italian newspaper Il Manifesto. His posts vividly describe what the people of Gaza are experiencing right now. In one, a doctor describes the effects of the white phosphorus shells Israel is accused of using: "He said that what was totally inexplicable was the total absence of eyeballs, which even in the case of trauma of that magnitude should stay in place, at least traces of them."
