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23 July 2002 By Galya Obukh in Moscow With the emergency phase over, the Russian Red Cross and the International Federation are turning their attention to the medium and long term needs of the victims of the worst floods in 70 years, which left nearly 100 people dead, affected more than 300,000 people and damaged or destroyed more than 50,000 houses as well as roads, bridges, and electric power lines. In late June, the flooding ravaged nine regions of the Russian Federation - the Krasnodar and Stavropol regions, the Republics of Dagestan, Adygeya, Kabardino-Balkariya, Karachaevo-Cherkessiya, Ingushetiya, Chechnya and North Osetiya. "The scope of Red Cross assistance in the affected regions will now turn to post-disaster and rehabilitation activities," said Tatyana Nikolaenko, Chairperson of the Russian Red Cross. "Winter is coming soon, and thousands of people do not even have a roof above their heads, not to speak of warm clothes, food and basic sanitary and hygiene items." State funds assigned for post-disaster relief activities were almost fully spent on reconstruction and rehabilitation after last year's flooding in Yakutia. The Federal Council has officially appealed to the national and international community for support in helping the victims of this year's disaster regain some sort of normality in their lives. In order to help the Russian Red Cross assist some 20,000 people over the next eight months, the International Federation has launched an appeal for 1.2 million Swiss francs. The funds will be used to provide flood victims with stoves, bedding, warm winter clothes and shoes as well as food and hygiene parcels. The distributions will begin in September and will target the most vulnerable, including large families, single-parent families and elderly people living alone. Medical supplies will also be sent to first aid posts destroyed or damaged by the flooding. The appeal was written after a joint Russian Red Cross/Federation/ICRC team assessed the needs in the field. "We still find emergency needs here, including mattresses and bed linen," says Alastair Gordon-Gibson, head of the Federation's Russia Delegation, based in Moscow, and a member to the assessment team in Krasnodarsk Krai. "A lot of houses are destroyed completely, because the walls were made of clay. Speaking about long-term rehabilitation, we will put major focus on the elderly and children. We plan to provide the affected families with mobile stoves for the winter and local hospitals with medicaments." One of the long-term concerns, expressed by the assessment team members, was lack of hygiene and dissemination of infections through water. "We have applied to national pharmaceutical companies for assistance in providing flood victims with disinfecting materials and basic medicaments, but have not received the answer so far," said Tatyana Nikolaenko. Food, clothes, and reconstruction materials are also priorities. The appeal also includes psychological support and professional legal counselling for flood victims. Many people are stressed, lost and some are aggressive. Russian Red Cross psychologists and lawyers, working with Chechen migrants, have started to provide these services. "Many people are frustrated, they have not yet got over the shock of living through the losses of their belongings and in some cases of their relatives," says Vyacheslav Zakharevski, a Russian Red Cross psychologist from Stavropol. "And some are asking our lawyers about compensation rights. People's emotional state is unpredictable, many are in need of sedatives." Many volunteers were mobilised by the Russian Red Cross across the country. They help sorting second hand clothes, collecting relief items from the general public, organisations and enterprises, loading/unloading and distributing aid to the vulnerable. More than 50 tonnes of donations were sent by Russians across the country. One of the volunteers, 78-year-old Ideya Morozova, visited 18 sanatoriums in Sochi in two days, asking for assistance to flood victims on behalf of the Red Cross. "I have been a Red Cross member since 1938," she says. "I served as a Red Cross nurse during the Second World War, and since then I always go to the Red Cross, asking, what can I do to help. I feel younger when I work for the good of the people." "As a result of her action, we have collected a truck full of relief commodities for the flood victims in Uspensk district of Krasnodar Krai," says Olga Moiseeva, chairperson of the Sochi Red Cross committee. "Employees of one sanatorium donated one day's salary - over 22,000 roubles - to support the vulnerable, and all other sanatorium employees became Red Cross members. Their entrance fees were also used for the benefit of flood victims." The Sochi committee has also taken 178 children from the affected families to regional centres for three weeks of rest and recreation, and provided them with clothes and hygiene items. Olga assured that further support would be provided to the children. The Russian Red Cross, the International Federation and the ICRC are working in close co-operation, providing relief and support to the vulnerable in the affected areas, and co-ordinating their activities with other organizations and state agencies in the field. To date, their joint efforts in providing assistance to flood victims across all nine affected regions came to nearly 400 tones of relief commodities, including food, water, clothes, footwear, blankets, bed linen, pillows, jerry cans, kitchen utensils, candles, hygiene items, tents and plastic sheeting for temporary shelters. Of that amount, more than 270 tonnes were provided by the ICRC, who will continue to help flood victims in Chechnya. Related Links: 19 July 2002 - Emergency Appeal: Floods in the northern Caucasus and south of Russia 4 July 2002 - Floods in southern Russia are a national disaster More on: Russia |
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