A. Situation analysis
Description of the disaster
Madagascar is within the regional Inter Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and beginning the week of 12 January 2015, pressure in this zone resulted in unreasonably high amounts of rain in the city of Antananarivo. Antananarivo is an area prone to flooding, with two thirds of the city classified as a flood plain, which leads to a chronic annual cycle of flooding emergencies, displacement, injury and loss of life.
During 2010-2013, several illegal house developments were built within the capital without authorization in the so-called prohibited areas such as drainage canals, dikes and flood zones, where flood water and waste water is known to drain from the city. Such factors make the flood contingency plan of Antananarivo obsolete and the authorities are yet to deal with the unauthorized housing development in the risk areas.
On 16 January 2015, the tropical cyclone Chezda hit Madagascar, which caused the Antananarivo pumping station (used to drain rain and waste water from the city) to break down, causing the levels of surrounding rivers to rise. This led to the government issuing a red alert for the capital (or warning of immediate danger). It also resulted in considerable damage within Madagascar’s central region (Analamanga) central, southern region (Menabe), and southeast (Vatovavy Fitovinany and Atsimo Atsinanana), as well as western parts of the island.
As of 30 January 2015, according to preliminary assessments by the Malagasy Red Cross Society (CRM), 80,000 people had been affected, with more than 20,000 living in temporary shelters throughout the country including more than 16,000 in Antananarivo. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), 68 people were killed.
On 2 February 2015, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) released CHF 262,902 from the Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF) to support CRM to meet the immediate needs of 3,000 households (15,000 people) in the sectors of emergency shelter and non-food items (NFIs), and water, sanitation and hygiene, for a period of three months.