December 2004 witnessed devastating tsunami waves that hit the shores of Asian countries, generating an unprecedented disaster as well as prompting an immediate, generous response from people who had been spared.
The destruction
There were very few injured compared to the many who died. For relatives it was difficult to identify the dead as all the corpses looked alike after decomposition in the sun. Everywhere bodies lay in the open or in city morgues wrapped in washed up sheets or clothing, waiting to be identified. To be included in the list of dead, death certificates needed to be issued. This led to delay in many places, as there were not enough doctors or government officials, especially in the first few days.
As the identification of bodies continued, the official death toll rose, but thousands more remained untraceable since the waves had washed bodies far away into the sea. One month after, the official death toll was thought to exceed 200,000 in all the Asian countries around Bandar Aceh, Indonesia, the epicentre of the quake. Many deaths were never recorded. |
Damage after the tsunami |
|
Critical relief - CINI's response
CINI responded with three teams of volunteers carrying food, medical supplies and cash for local purchases, and arrived on location on the third day following the disaster, reaching Nagipattinum District of Tamil Nadu and Andaman Island in India, and Hambantota and Ampara Districts in Sri Lanka, where there was massive destruction and loss of life and property.
Soon after the tragedy, the displaced people first sought shelter in schools, Buddhist monasteries, mosques and other public places. Most of the people were served with cooked food in community kitchens during the first few days. At one time, the CINI team was feeding over 20,000 affected people in different camps through such community kitchens.
The next step was to provide temporary shelters in the form of plastic sheets tied to bamboo frames cut from the surrounding forests as in Andaman, or by housing groups of two to three families in tents or in sheds constructed with light roofing and tarpaulin.
As the families moved to temporary shelters, CINI provided raw food items such as rice, pulses, tea, sugar and cooking oil. A family kit comprising of utensils, cooking stove, torch, lanterns, and mosquito nets were provided in a steel storage trunk, which could be taken to a permanent house once constructed. Such kits were distributed to over 10,000 families.
CINI also distributed women's undergarments, as donated clothes did not include such items. In Sri Lanka, a local women's group mentioned that some incidents of sexual abuse and rape had been reported. Lack of undergarments was identified as one of the aggravating causes. This was also the case in parts of the affected area in India.
Urgent intervention in the first few days sought to treat those injured, and such emergencies were handled well by the government health services and the emergency teams who had been mobilised within hours of the tragedy. As the kitchens started working and kits were being distributed, we begun to consider the trauma that individuals or entire families faced.
Many remained in a state of shock as a result of the tragedy, owing to the loss of their near and dear ones. We had discovered that the sale of alcohol had gone up several times in the area, as the government gave out cash benefits to those affected. Consequently, CINI set up mobile medical teams whose main objective was to provide counselling.
CINI UK's contribution
As relief ensued, CINI sought to look at livelihood options. The fishermen had to go out to fish, local farmers had to go back to their destroyed crops, auto rickshaws lost to the tsunami along with small shops and businesses had to start functioning again.
Funds were required for this phase of the rehabilitation. Replacing a fibreglass fishing boat would cost almost Rs 200,000 (£2,400). An auto rickshaw or the capital for a small shop selling daily necessities required about Rs 100,000 (£1,200), a hand tractor used in agriculture cost the same amount. Replacing a bicycle for a family, a common means of transport, cost Rs 2,500 (£30). Such injections of capital gave a fresh start to many of the lives shattered by the disaster.
CINI UK was able to contribute towards helping give fishermen back their livelihoods. Funds collected from the disaster appeal bought two fibreglass fishing boats with nets and outboard motors. One boat was able to support three families. Transparency has been encouraged by recording the names of the families who had received boats on the walls of public buildings. |
Fishermen who's families benefited, standing in a boat donated with the help of funds from The India Association |
|
See here for a printable version of this report (Word document)
 top
back to What we do
|
