From Climate Crisis to Weather Disaster: Tropical Storm Alia Strikes the Sundarbans
29/05/09 07:17
The Sundarbans are a
chain of islands spanning the mouths of the
Ganges-Brahmaputra rivers off the shores of India
and Bangladesh. They’ve been the subject of several
entries here, including some of their human,
species, and ecosystem-based
vulnerabilities to climate
change,
disaster risk reduction, and the founding of a
regional
climate adaptation center. A major tropical storm has hit
the region. The regional WWF director for the
Sundarbans is Anurag Danda, where he focuses on
community-based adaptation and assists with the
Bengal tiger program. He emailed me this morning
with an update, which I have edited here. Please
read his update, see the images he’s sent of the
damage, and consider his request for assistance.
Contact information included.
Tropical cyclone Aila with wind speeds up to 116 km/hr (about 80 miles/hr) passed through the state of West Bengal, India, on Monday, 25 May, leaving behind it a trail of destruction. The district of 24-Parganas South bore the brunt of the cyclone although it has wreaked havoc in the entire state from the coast to the mountains of northern Bengal. Almost half a million people have been affected according to latest reports. Heavy rainfall has submerged villages across the Sundarbans and most are still waterlogged.
People have taken shelter in schools, Panchayat buildings [ED: village assembly or government structures], hospitals, markets, and even on roads. Health and hygiene has become a serious issue due to the large number of deaths of domestic animals. It took over three days for electricity and water to be restored in Kolkata [ED: also known as Calcutta, a city of over 15 million people]. Initial reports indicate that the administrative blocks in middle and eastern Sundarbans are worst affected. These are Gosaba, Sandeshkhali I and II, Patharpratima, Kultali and Basanti. Communication networks have been disrupted and inhabitants of many islands are still unreachable.
The larger picture of the full impact of the disaster is not yet clear. WWF-India and other agencies fanned out at the earliest opportunity for a rapid assessment of the situation. Wildlife deaths have been reported from the Sunderbans. At least a dozen deer carcass have been spotted in and around Tipligheri village, one of WWF-India’s areas of operation in eastern Sundarbans. As expected of a situation like this, there is speculation about tiger deaths but there are no figures yet. Although tigers in Sunderbans are known to be good swimmers, it is not known how they have fared against the cyclone. A tiger that had strayed into Jamespur village was rescued by the Forest Department.
Field staff of WWF-India is coordinating with the forest department, other NGOs, and UN agencies to provide relief. Two field staff reached different sites in Gosaba and Kultali on 27 May and set up relief operations. WWF-India’s Resource and Disaster Relief Centre that was recently inaugurated in Mosuni island was used to temporarily shelter the displaced. Twelve households had taken shelter there and have since returned to their homes, as the cyclone moved away. WWF-India’s state office has provided relief material to communities in Sandeshkhali I & II blocks in North 24-Parganas. Our field officers returned today (29 May). From the accompanying images it is clear that not much of this area will be left cultivable due to salinity damage [ED: an important part of the community-based adaptation efforts focused on adaptive agriculture]. Even before the cyclone hit here, WWF-India was helping local farmers plant salt-tolerant paddy varieties to over come this problem. Also, as an adaptive strategy against frequent seawater incursion to groundwater, WWF-India has been encouraging local aquaculture farmers to cultivate sea bass. This can help ensure they have an assured supply of food in cases like the one we have seen now.
WWF-India will always stand by the Sunderbans and its inhabitants, and this cyclone is no obstacle to the team’s dedication. We have provided and will continue to provide the support needed to ensure the future of this critically and globally important area.
Individuals and oganisations interested in assisting us in providing relief are welcome to contact Anurag Danda or Sejal Worah at the addresses below.
Key contacts:
Anurag Danda, Senior Coordinator, Sunderbans Programme, WWF-India, Cell: +91 9748499301, email: anuragdanda@wwfindia.net
Sejal Worah, Programme Director, WWF India, Cell: +91 9837070839, email: sworah@wwfindia.net
