 |
Disaster
types
|
| Drought |
|
| 
Drought is a devastating phenomenon. In comparison to fast
on-set disasters, drought destroys an area slowly, taking
hold and tightening its grip with time. In severe cases, drought
can last for many years, and can have devastating effects
on agriculture and water supplies.
In general, drought is defined as an extended period - a season,
a year, several years - of deficient rainfall relative to
the statistical multi-year average for the region. Lack of
rainfall leads to inadequate water required for plants, animals
and human beings. A drought leads to other disasters, namely
food insecurity, famine, malnutrition, epidemics and displacement
of populations from one area to another.
Rural communities can sometimes cope with one or two successive
rain failures and crop or cattle losses: the situation becomes
a crucial emergency when they have exhausted all their purchasing
resources, food stocks and usual coping mechanisms. |
|
| |
| Consequences
of drought |
 Desertification
The processes by
which an already arid areas becomes even more barren , less
capable of retaining vegetation, and progress towards becoming
a desert. This is often a cause of longterm disasters.
A catastrophic food
shortage affecting large numbers of people due to climatic,
environmental and socio-economic reasons. The cause of the
famine may produce great migrations to less affected areas.
Find out more about famine and food
security.
Food shortage or crop failure
 Drought
hit particularly hard in 2002. 14.4 million people in Southern
africa are expected to be affected as well as 10 - 14 million
in Ethiopia and a further one million in eritrea. The Red
Cross Red Crescent is providing response across these African
countries and has launched a series of appeals.
Red Cross Red Crescent response to drought and food security
generally prioritizes food supplies, safe water and basic
sanitation, basic health services, food security surveillance
and nutritional monitoring and seeds and tools distributions.
Safe water and basic sanitation are a key concern, as wells
and other ground water supplies dry up or become polluted.
Health teams, reinforcing basic health services of existing
clinics, are an important element of food security response,
since illness reduces people's ability to benefit from what
little food is available. The teams can also take on supervising
food distributions, carrying out nutritional surveillance
and monitoring food security. Mobile health teams may be
necessary to reach scattered villages or nomadic camp areas.
As a more long term solution, distributions of seeds and
tools can help families re-establish a source of food or
income.
Since 1919, the International Federation has responded to
over 200 cases of drought, famine and food insecurity.
|
| |
| Related
news |
| Read
more drought related news stories |
| |
| Photo
galleries |
|
| |
|
|
|
