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Sri Lanka: Humanitarian Country Team Flood and Landslide Response Plan: Monitoring Dashboard (July 2017)

Countries
Sri Lanka
Sources
UN RC Sri Lanka
Publication date

Situation Overview

On 25 and 26 May 2017, heavy rainfall and strong winds brought by the southwest monsoon led to flooding and landslides in 15 of the 25 districts of Sri Lanka. Galle, Kalutara, Matara and Ratnapura were identified as the worst affected districts. Since the launch of the Humanitarian Country Team Emergency Response Plan, 213 people have been confirmed killed and over 3,000 remain displaced, according to the Disaster Management Centre. Humanitarian agencies continue to work alongside local partners to address the needs of affected communities, and are ensuring that their activities complement the Government of Sri Lanka at national and sub-national levels.

Response update

  • 600,000 reached: The support by the Health Sector covers eight districts where 10 Base Hospitals and 30 Divisional Hospitals are supported in addition to the public health institution network. Hence the supported institutions cater to the entire hospital/ clinic health divisions. The public health activities (e.g. disease surveillance) will benefit the entire population of the eight districts.

  • Provision of life-saving medical services including medical team deployment and reconstruction of infrastructure. The Health Sector has supported the deployment of medical teams in eight districts to provide life-saving medical care in the field.

  • Provision of essential reproductive health services – 4,000 dignity kits and 2,000 maternity kits are being procured by Health Sector partners and is currently planning distribution. Maternal and Child Health service provision in the field is almost back to normal where routine services are maintained.

  • Strengthening of disease surveillance, vector control and health promotion activities in hospitals and field. Health Sector partners are supporting disease surveillance activities in eight districts and also provided 50 fogging machines for vector control activities.

  • Mental health and psychosocial support provision to survivors. The Health Sector is supporting mental health care provision in the affected areas.

Challenges

  • In 2017, over 76,000 cases of dengue have been reported to date – the caseload continues to increase. Approximately 43 per cent of cases were reported from the Western Province (Kalutara, Colombo, Gampaha) with the increase in mosquito breeding sites. The monsoon rains and flooding has heightened the risk of dengue and other water-borne diseases. The high reported dengue caseload will impact on the Health Sector’s capacity to respond to dengue and in other priority health responses.