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Myanmar

Myanmar: Mandalay Floods - Operation Update Report (DREF MDRMM015)

Attachments

Summary of major revisions made to emergency plan of action:

This operation update is published to formalize the no-cost extension of the operation by two months. The operation is being extended to implement the remaining activities that are planned within the operation which includes procurement and distribution of items that were delayed. The delays were caused by a second flood that occurred in the same area of operation as well as additional restrictions imposed due to the increased severity of the COVID-19 situation within the country. Both events were initially identified as a risk for the operation and measures had been taken to mitigate the challenges.

A. SITUATION ANALYSIS

Description of the disaster

A total of 4,000 households of 20,000 people in Mandalay are affected by the rapid onset flood that was caused by a broken geological sedimentary dike on 19 July 2020.

Mandalay is an administrative division in central part of Myanmar and lies on the eastern bank of the Ayeyarwady River. There are seven townships in Mandalay where five are located in urban areas and another two townships (Amarapura and Patheingyi) are located in rural areas which include a farmland covering an area of more than 4.04 km2.

The villages in rural area of Amarapura experience flooding from time to time due to its proximity to Ayeyarwady River that rises during heavy rains. However, in July 2020, the water level of Ayeyarwady River has risen to emergency level especially in Amarapura township. The flood situation worsened when a dike broke near Sagaing-Mandalay Highway on evening of 19 July 2020. The event caused a sudden rise of water level downstream in nearby township and villages. About 200 household were immediately evacuated in response to this. MRCS volunteers in coordination with the state government and local authorities supported the evacuation process.

MRCS Mandalay branch has conducted rapid needs assessment additional 48 hours damage and needs assessment (DANA). The summary of the findings are as follows:

  • 22 temporary evacuation centers were in operation during the floods.
  • 7 urban ward areas were impacted by the floods.
  • Total affected population are 14,410 people (3,362 families) .