International Charter on Space and Major Disasters

Floods in Uttarakhand, India

International Charter on Space and Major Disasters — 2013-06-19T07:00:00+0000

Heavy rainfall, due to an unusually strong monsoon season, has caused flooding in northern India. 130 people have been reported killed, and hundreds more have been displaced.

The flooding has destroyed over a hundred houses and approximately twenty bridges. The heavy rainfall has also resulted in landslides, that combined with the destroyed bridges and blocked roads have lead to some communities being cut off.

The state of Uttarakhand has received the worst of the flooding and tens of thousands of pilgrims, visiting the Hindu temples of Kedarnarth and Badrinath, have also been stranded in the state. The temple of Kedarnarth has been damaged by the flood waters and landslides and the nearby town has been almost totally submerged by mud.

India's Army and Air Force are conducting rescue operations and have evacuated thousands of people so far.

Floods in Germany

International Charter on Space and Major Disasters — 2013-06-02T11:00:00+0000

Torrential rainfall in Saxony and Bavaria (South of Germany) caused rapid increase of river levels over the weekend.

A state of emergency has been declared in the cities of Passau and Rosenheim. The Bavaria flood alert service forecasts heavy rains to worsen, affecting the Danube and Inn rivers. Other affected states are Saxony, Thuringia and Baden-Wuerttemberg.

Emergency and rescue efforts are under way, and the army has been deployed to support flood affected areas after reaching record levels of flooding.

Copahue volcano in Chile and Argentina

International Charter on Space and Major Disasters — 2013-05-27T11:00:00+0000

The seismic activity of Copahue volcano has prompted Chilean and Argentinian authorities to issue a red alert and evacuate 3,000 people from the South American border. Some 460 families are expected to be affected by the evacuations.

So far, Copahue (10,000ft) has only spewed gas and thousands of minor earth tremors have been registered but there are increasing concerns that the volcano could erupt imminently.

Chilean Interior Minister Andres Chadwick confirmed in a news conference that “the red alert had been issued after monitoring the seismic activity of the volcano”. Experts monitoring the volcano suggest it could remain active for another 48 hours.

The worst affected areas are; Bio Bio (Chile), Caviahaue and Loncopue (Argentina). Initially, a yellow alert was issued in Argentina, but was later raised to a higher level red alert.

Copahue volcano is one of the most active volcanoes in the South American region. Last December, Copahue began spewing ash and gas and raised smoke almost 1.5km in the sky; a red alert was issued in Chile and several residents were temporarily evacuated from the area.

In 2011, the eruption of Puyehue volcano caused extensive economic and structural damage in Chile and Argentina which also affected popular tourist resorts; Bariloche, Villa la Angostora and Neuqu�n.

Tropical Cyclone Mahasen in Bangladesh and Myanmar

International Charter on Space and Major Disasters — 2013-05-15T11:00:00+0000

Tropical Cyclone Mahasen struck the southern coast of Bangladesh on 16 May 2013, and is expected to affect as much as 8.2 million people in the area. Hundreds of thousands of people have been ordered to evacuate in advance of the oncoming storm in Bangladesh and neighbouring Myanmar.

While the storm has not been classified as severe, the main concerns are about the resulting floods and landslides left in the cyclone's wake. This was evident in Sri Lanka, where at least seven people were killed in floods and mudslides even though the cyclone did not make landfall in the country.

There are reports that two people have been killed in Bangladesh, so far, and fifty people were killed in Myanmar while attempting to evacuate by boat on 14 May.

It is forecast that Cyclone Mahasen will drive further inland and weaken in Bangladesh and Myanmar over the coming days.

Earthquake in China

International Charter on Space and Major Disasters — 2013-04-20T11:00:00+0000

A 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck Lushan County of Sichuan province, South-West China, at 08:02am (UTC) on Saturday 20 April 2013. Multiple aftershocks were felt in the area increasing fears of landslides.

Media reports suggest that more than 200 people are dead or missing, 11,500 are injured of which 960 are serious and thousands more are left homeless after the quake. The extent of the damage is still unknown however; several homes have been destroyed, villages have been ruined and communication networks are disrupted.

The earthquake has destroyed the village of Longmen, where most buildings collapsed making it difficult for rescuers to reach the affected area.

Rescue efforts are underway in some of the most remote areas of Sichuan province. Relief supplies have been reaching these areas slowly due to blocked roads and heavy traffic jams within the province. In 2008 a 7.9 magnitude earthquake devastated Sichuan province, killing more than 90,000 people.

Cyclone Haruna in Madagascar

International Charter on Space and Major Disasters — 2013-02-23T11:00:00+0000

Cyclone Haruna struck southwest Madagascar on Friday 22 February 2013, and made landfall as a Category 2 storm with wind speeds of up to 105 mph. The storm fuelled itself over Mozambique with gusty wind speeds of up to 95mph as it headed towards the island of Madagascar.

The cyclone’s cloud-filled eye was centred near 23.3 south latitude and 44.2 east longitude on the largest city and capital of Antananarivo, Madagascar.

The worst affected districts are; Morombe, Taolagnaro and Toliary. So far it has been reported that 10 people were killed, 17 people were hurt and nearly 3,000 others were affected and some 1,000 people were evacuated to temporary shelter during the storm.

Over the weekend, the island experienced torrential rains and heavy flooding. The Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) expects the storm to weaken as it moves back into cooler waters of the Southern Indian Ocean.

View the SERTIT Rapid Mapping webpage for this event