North Korea floods a 'major, complex disaster', Red Cross says

Updated

North Korea is experiencing a "major and complex disaster", according to the Red Cross, after floods killed scores of people and left more than 100,000 homeless and in need of urgent help.

The charity said rescue workers were struggling to reach stricken communities in the country's far north, where thousands have been left homeless and the risk of disease is looming.

"From what we saw, it is clear that this is a very major and complex disaster," head of the Pyongyang office of the International Federation of the Red Cross, Chris Staines, said after visiting the affected areas.

At least 133 people are known to have died after torrential rains triggered massive floods that tore through villages, devastating entire communities and washing away buildings.

Hundreds more are missing and 140,000 people are in urgent need of food and shelter.

"The floods came through with such force they destroyed everything in their path," Mr Staines said.

"People were salvaging whatever possessions they could from piles of debris that used to be their homes."

Some 24,000 houses have been totally destroyed and thousands more damaged, with the full extent of the disaster still emerging as rescue workers battle to reach areas that have been totally cut off, the Red Cross said.

Mr Staines said there was barely a building left unscathed in some villages they had visited on the outskirts of Hoeryong City, which lies on the Tumen River on North Korea's border with China.

"People displaced from the floods are now in a very difficult situation and there are real risks of secondary disasters, particularly relating to people's health," Mr Staines added.

At least 100,000 people in Hoeryong City do not have safe drinking water, with up to 600,000 people in the affected area facing disruptions to their water supply, the Red Cross said.

The disaster is set to worsen North Korea's already chronic food shortages, with about 40,000 hectares of farmland inundated just weeks before the local maize and rice crops were due to be harvested.

"Their loss is another disaster that will be felt in the coming weeks and months," the Red Cross warned.

The impoverished nation is vulnerable to natural disasters, especially floods, due partly to deforestation and poor infrastructure.

At least 169 people were killed by a massive rainstorm in the summer of 2012.

Major state resources are swallowed up by a missile and nuclear weapons programme Pyongyang says is essential to deter US aggression.

AFP

Topics: korea-democratic-peoples-republic-of

First posted </s> North Korea is experiencing a "major and complex disaster" the Red Cross has warned, after floods killed scores of people and left tens of thousands in need of urgent help.

Rescue workers are struggling to reach stricken communities in the country's far north, where thousands have been left homeless, and the risk of disease is looming.

"From what we saw, it is clear that this is a very major and complex disaster," said Chris Staines, who heads a Red Cross delegation in North Korea and has visited the affected areas.

At least 133 people are known to have died after torrential rains triggered massive floods that tore through villages, devastating entire communities and washing away buildings.

Hundreds more are missing and 140,000 people are in urgent need of food and shelter.

"The floods came through with such force, they destroyed everything in their path," Staines said.

"People were salvaging whatever possessions they could from piles of debris that used to be their homes."

Some 24,000 houses have been totally destroyed and thousands more damaged, with the full extent of the disaster still emerging as rescue workers battle to reach areas that have been totally cut off, the Red Cross said.

"There was barely a building left unscathed," in some villages they visited on the outskirts of Hoeryong City, Staines said.

"People displaced from the floods are now in a very difficult situation and there are real risks of secondary disasters, particularly relating to people's health," Staines added.

At least 100,000 people in Hoeryong City do not have safe drinking water, with up to 600,000 people in the affected area facing disruptions to their water supply, the Red Cross said.

The disaster is set to worsen North Korea's already chronic food shortages, with around 16,000 hectares (40,000 acres) of farmland inundated just weeks before the local maize and rice crops were due to be harvested.

"Their loss is another disaster that will be felt in the coming weeks and months," the Red Cross warned.

The impoverished nation is vulnerable to natural disasters, especially floods, due partly to deforestation and poor infrastructure. </s> PYONGYANG: Severe flooding in North Korea has killed at least 76 people with another 75 missing, many of them children, the Red Cross said Thursday. Thousands of people have been left homeless after heavy rains triggered floods and landslides, toppling more than 800 buildings including houses, clinics and schools in North and South Hwanghae provinces, leaving Red Cross volunteers scrambling to find survivors. “Thousands have lost their homes and are in urgent need of health services, shelter, food, safe drinking water and sanitation,” said John Fleming of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies North Korea country office. </s> Severe flooding in North Korea has killed at least 76 people with another 75 missing, many of them children, the Red Cross said Thursday.

Thousands of people have been left homeless after heavy rains triggered floods and landslides, toppling more than 800 buildings including houses, clinics and schools in North and South Hwanghae provinces, leaving Red Cross volunteers scrambling to find survivors.

“Thousands have lost their homes and are in urgent need of health services, shelter, food, safe drinking water and sanitation,” said John Fleming of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies North Korea country office.

“With the cold season around the corner, we are also concerned this disaster will increase the risk of health problems and food insecurity for some communities.”

Impoverished North Korea is vulnerable to natural disasters. More than 130 people died after floods struck North Hamgyong province in 2016, bringing down buildings and leaving hundreds of thousands in urgent need of food and shelter.

The country’s territory is largely composed of mountains and hills that have long been stripped bare for fuel or turned into terraced rice fields, allowing rainwater to flow downhill unchecked.

A series of floods and droughts was partially responsible for a famine that killed hundreds of thousands between 1994-98, with economic mismanagement and the loss of Soviet support exacerbating the situation. </s> Severe flooding in two provinces of North Korea has killed 76 people in recent days, the International Federation of of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said on Thursday. Around 75 people are missing, including many children, the non-profit organisation said.

Recent heavy rains have caused major floods and landslides in low-lying areas of North and South Hwanghae provinces, destroying more than 800 buildings including homes, clinics and schools, the organisation said. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Red Cross Society has provided blankets, hygiene kits, first aid and transport to nearby hospitals. It has also installed mobile water treatment plants.

“Thousands have lost their homes and are in urgent need of health services, shelter, food, safe drinking water and sanitation,” John Fleming, from the North Korea office of the International Federation of of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said. “With the cold season around the corner, we are also concerned this disaster will increase the risk of health problems and food insecurity for some communities.” </s> GENEVA (Reuters) - Severe flooding in North Korea has killed at least 76 people with nearly the same number missing and thousands left homeless by the destruction, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said on Thursday.

Volunteers from the national Red Cross are conducting search and rescue operations in North and South Hwanghae provinces, where heavy rains began on August 28, it said, adding that many children were among the 75 missing.

“Heavy rains in recent days triggered large-scale flooding and landslides in low-lying areas, destroying more than 800 buildings including homes, clinics and schools,” the Geneva-based Federation said in a statement.

The Red Cross Society of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), the country’s official name, was providing aid and deploying mobile water treatment plants, it said.

“Thousands have lost their homes and are in urgent need of health services, shelter, food, safe drinking water and sanitation,” said John Fleming of the Federation’s country office.

A month ago, the agency warned that a heat wave in North Korea had led to rice, maize and other crops withering in the fields, “with potentially catastrophic effects”, putting the country at risk of a “full-blown food security crisis”.

The drought-affected areas were South Hamgyong and South Pyongan provinces.

Drought and floods have long been a seasonal threat in North Korea, which lacks irrigation systems and other infrastructure to ward off natural disasters.

“Extreme weather events are occuring much more often,” Federation spokeswoman Laura Ngo-Fontaine said on Thursday.
The Red Cross warns that North Korea faces a "major, complex disaster" after recent floods kill scores of people and leave more than 100,000 homeless.