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Fiji Floods – January 2009

WASH Cluster Response

Overview of disasters and Response:

(2) Medium level involvement of international actors

Steven Iddings

Environmental Engineer

World Health Organization (WHO)

South Pacific Office, Suva

Outline

Background

Main cluster partners

Early response

Coordination

Outcomes

Lessons Learned

Conclusion

Background

Extraordinary rainfall in 3 of Fiji’s 4 Divisions

(Northern, Western, Central)

Records were set for rainfall intensity

(e.g. mm/10 min, mm/hr, mm/day)

No cyclone, little wind or coastal damage

Typical disaster for Fiji:

January cyclones / floods occurred in Jan 07 & 08

Main ‘WASH’ Cluster Partners

UNICEF cluster ‘lead agency’
WHO
EU
Fiji Red Cross
Private: (e.g. Fiji Water)
MOH

(Environmental Health & Health Promotion)

Others Donors

(AusAID and NZAID)

Early response:

~First two weeks:

Water containers

(5, 10 and 20 litre capacities)

Water purification tablets

(5 & 25 litre doses)

Water carting:

trucks / bladders (1500 litres)

Technical support to utilities and donors

Medium term response:

Medium: (2 to 8 weeks)

Water purification tablets

with illustrated

instructions

(Unicef, WHO, MoH, NDMO)

Temporary water tanks

distribution / installation

(Fiji Water, PWD)

Water testing

“

H2S” bottles (presence / absence test for bacteria)

Community (hygiene & awareness) ”Toolkits”

Monitoring of response (UNICEF)

Longer term response:

Longer term

: (2-8 months)

Comprehensive rural water system
construction & improvements

(Unicef-EU DIPECHO; Euro ~250,000)

MoH water quality laboratory supplies &

equipment

(WHO – NZAID; USD 10,000)

Coordination:

UN PHT meetings

(updates on WASH)

MOH meetings

(portions on WASH)

Daily for 1

week

(13-16 January 2009)

Mon, Wed &Fri during the 2

week

Mon & Fri the 3

week;

~weekly for following 3 weeks

Telephone & email

among all partners

E-mail lists developed & evolved according to topic

Outcomes

Distribution of:

water containers

Bottled water

(Fiji Water, other local mfrs)

Emergency holding tanks, bladders

(few)

Water purification tablets

(limited reach?)

Water testing

(“H2S”)

bottles, and

Community

(hygiene & awareness)

”Toolkits”

(by MoH: 80+ kits)

Fiji Floods – January 2009

Health Cluster Response

Overview of disasters and Response:

(2) Medium level involvement of international actors

Background

MoH Fiji “PHEMAP” courses held in 2004, 2006, 2008

MOH has good National Health Emergencies &
Disaster Management Plan (HEADMaP) 2007-2011;

Divisional Medical Officers (DMO’s) involved in
planning & training

Health facilities damage was severe in some places,
but generally limited

Background

(cont)

MOH National DISMAC activated 13 January:

Chaired by Deputy Secretary for Public Health
24 hrs operation initially
Situation reports & previous minutes received for
each meeting

Divisional MoH-DISMACs:

Northern, Central & Western
provided situation reports each morning for
National DISMAC

Main ‘WASH’ Cluster Partners

MOH-DISMAC

(Overall coordinator of health response including; Divisional Medical

Officers, Nursing, National Center for Health Promotion,

Communicable Disease Surveillance, Environmental Health

including vector control & food safety, Nutrition, etc)

Served as the PHT ‘Health Cluster’ meeting

WHO -

cluster ‘lead agency’

UNICEF

–

cluster lead for nutrition

AusAID –

including FHSIP sector support project staff & resources

Fiji Red Cross

– first responder

Others -

Coordination:

UN PHT meetings

(health reported at each PHT meeting)

MOH DISMAC meetings

(CWM Hospital)

Daily for 1

week

(13-16 January 2009)

Mon, Wed &Fri during the 2

week

Mon & Fri the 3

week;

~weekly for following 3 weeks

Telephone & email

among all partners

E-mail lists developed & evolved

Early response:

~First two weeks:

DMO (Western) 12 January request to DISMAC

(Western) included:

Water storage containers

Water purification tablets

Oral rehydration salts

Broad-spectrum antibiotics

Most were available from Unicef stocks in Nadi

Medium term response:

Medium: (2 to 8 weeks)

WHO provided test kits and disease
surveillance forms & support including:

Typhoid (S-Typhi),Leptospirosis,Dengue

Translation of information flyers (Fijian,
Hindi)

Water testing kits, sanititation tool kits

UNICEF, Fiji Water - Tanks,

Longer term response:

Longer term

: (2-8 months)

WHO provided:

Test kits for Typhoid, Leptospirosis, Dengue
Water lab reagents
Epidemiologists and environmental health support

UNICEF provided:

soap and longer terms items
Health IEC messages, nutrition
Technical support on health and nutrition

Numerous other partners at field level

Outcomes

Distribution of medicines, ORS, kits; etc
Nutrition support for ration packs

(Unicef & MoH)

Public health and awareness messages
Useful field & community monitoring of response by
Unicef

Outcomes

Distribution of advance quantities from in-country
stock

(e.g. Provision of typhoid, leptospirosis and dengue test kits)

Logistical / transport issues with all distributions
Nutrition support for ration packs

(Unicef & MoH)

Lack of disease statistics reporting
Unclear distribution of stocks when routed through
NDMO DISMAC

(e.g. water purification tablets & flyers)

Field & community monitoring of response by UNICEF

Lessons Learned:

Value of in-country stocks:

Fiji Red Cross –

pre-positioned stocks & procedures

UNICEF -

stockpiles in shipping containers; Nadi & Suva

WHO “PacELF”

(Pacific Filariasis Elimination Program)

- stocks

of sprayers and vector control chemicals

Lessons Learned:

Difficult for MOH-DISMAC / Health Cluster
to monitor NDMO-DISMAC distributions

(e.g. water purification tablets, instruction flyers, ORS, etc which are

health related)

UNICEF-led survey revealed flood relief
distributions coverage

(often less than imagined)

Conclusions:

WASH & Health Clusters:

PHT meetings + MOH DISMAC meetings were
adequate for the ‘Health Cluster’

Were also adequate for the ‘WASH Cluster’

technically

supported through the Pacific ‘WASH Coalition’

(SOPAC or WHO

facilitated)

Further coordination via e-mail:

saved time, were effective: (

e.g. WASH Cluster circulars: reached ~30

addressees in ~10 offices incl. PHT & Govt)

easily targeted to key players, cc’d to others for info;
linked to MOH & NDMO; and
process & actions were well documented;

Conclusions:

WASH & Health Clusters:

Response monitoring (eg UNICEF survey) valuable

Prepositioning or ‘loans’ of supplies essential for early
support

Early field visits by cluster are important

PHT plus MoH DISMAC meetings were mostly
adequate to coordinate WASH & Health clusters

Thank you!