Floods in Sri Lanka

My colleagues in Sri Lanka have been sending in regular reports about the incredible flooding they have been witnessing in the north and east of the country.  Here are some of their comments:

·         Thousands have returned to their villages only to find their homes either fully destroyed or damaged

·         40 per cent of the national rice harvest has been lost to the two waves of floods

·         44,000 farmers have been affected from loss to paddy crops

·         Floods have also destroyed much of the infrastructure and fisheries sector and caused large numbers of deaths to livestock

·         Coping capacities have been stretched thin and requests and complaints continue to flood local government offices   

·         Communities living in remote areas are worst hit, as very few agencies have identified these areas for assistance

·         A range of agencies including CARE have been involved in providing NFIs to affected areas

·         Current needs far outweigh the resources available

·         The change in prioritization of needs from NFI to livelihood support and shelter as well as the lack of funds has affected both assessments and distribution

·         CARE has just completed part of the second round of food and shelter distributions in the districts of Batticaloa, Ampara, Polonnaruwa and Vavuniya

·         With shelter being a critical priority CARE is now in the process of procuring tin sheets as per requests made by government authorities

Your support for our work in Sri Lanka is welcome - click on http://care.ca/ to donate now!