A warning call to improve disaster prevention measures

After two days of intense rains brought on by tropical storm ‘Adrian’ as it crossed the Central American isthmus over El Salvador, there were fortunately only minor damages to report among the population and the environment, mainly in the western part of the country.

By Ricardo Martínez

27. May 2005

After two days of intense rains brought on by tropical storm ‘Adrian’ as it crossed the Central American isthmus over El Salvador, there were fortunately only minor damages to report among the population and the environment, mainly in the western part of the country. 

The most severely affected region was that between Guatemala and the lower Lempa River, from where some 13,000 persons had to be evacuated. They were later allowed to return to their homes, according to official reports.

The provinces with the highest rainfall were Sonsonate, Metapán, Santa Ana, Usulután, Cuscatlán, San Salvador and Ahuachapán. The rivers whose banks overflowed, though with no serious consequences, were the Lempa and the San Miguel. 

The National Territorial Studies Service (SNET, by its initials in Spanish), reported that tropical storm ‘Adrian’ took shape over the Pacific Ocean, after a clash of hot and cold air. Due to the speed the winds reached (between 115 and 140 km/hr) it was declared a type 1 hurricane as it advanced toward the western shores of this Central American country at 15 km per hour.

Beyond official propaganda

The Salvadoran government implemented an operation to evacuate people settled in some towns and villages with a high probability of being affected by the storm and ensuing rains.

However, in the words of the Salvadoran Foundation for Reconstruction and Development (REDES), which participated in support tasks, the Administration “overestimated the reports” and the National Emergency Committee (COEN), the official entity charged with handling natural disasters, dealt with the potentially dangerous situation “in a totally uncoordinated fashion.”

“In the municipality of Cojutepeque, provincial capital of Cuscatlán, the Municipal Emergency Committee and the Provincial Emergency Committee were working out of different quarters and with no relation between their actions”, said REDES in its report on tropical storm ‘Adrian’.

REDES went on to note that there was “institutional negligence, when people were encouraged to move to temporary shelters which didn’t offer even the most minimal safety conditions in which to wait until the threat had passed.” 

The REDES team, which visited the affected areas immediately in order to monitor the situation and act if there were an emergency, concluded that “the role played by SNET was useful in the sense that it reflected the information being generated by satellite images, specifically at the National Hurricane Centre in Florida, but they also revealed deficiencies or lack of capacity to correctly interpret and disseminate the information in a timely manner. The bulletins generated were often obsolete, in a clear demonstration of negligence, considering the potential seriousness of the threat. It remains to be seen if these deficiencies are a result of lack of technical understanding regarding how to analyse images and data, or whether indeed SNET’s function is simply to gather data and transfer them to COEN without further interpretation.”

REDES drew attention to the weaknesses found when it comes to facing future high risk climate phenomena: “SNET recognizes as a weakness that it only has two wind-measuring instruments, one in Acajutla and the other in La Unión. It turns out that in the case of a storm of ‘Adrian’s’ dimensions, the central part of the Salvadoran coastline has no instrument that might generate timely information in order to assist in taking appropriate measures. To this we would add that the calculations of the storm’s diameter kept fluctuating between 30 and 40 kilometres, depending upon the moment and the source of information. That gives us an idea of how technologically and scientifically weak the SNET actually is”. 

Needs assessment for facing natural disasters

The negative effects left by ‘Adrian’ turned out to be inferior to the damage caused by Hurricane Mitch in October 1998. However, notwithstanding that experience, and including the earthquakes of February 2001, the country still lacks a new Disaster Prevention Act, something which human rights, civil and social organisations have been proposing for many years.

At present, El Salvador operates under a Civil Defence Act passed in 1972. Its legal framework has simply been overtaken by events and is no longer useful under current conditions. In any case, the law was stillborn and civil society organisations have long considered it outdated, avers REDES. 

Under present circumstances it appears viable to once again embark upon discussion of the Disaster Prevention Act, for which a bill that has been under preparation for years is now in the hands of members of the Legislative Assembly (parliament).

Its main points are as follows: “To clarify the attributions and obligations of public officials vis-à-vis natural catastrophes that may take place; have at hand sufficient resources; eliminate bureaucratic procedures so as to be able to move quickly and efficiently given the urgent needs of the affected population; allow civil society to be the main actor in dealing with natural contingencies; and establish the frame of action for municipal governments.” 

Among other points, the REDES document considers it fundamental to have in place a plan for avoiding that respiratory and gastrointestinal infections spin out of control, as it is well known that torrential rains usually carry this type of problem in their wake. 

“Experience has been acquired, but the time has come to take the onslaughts of nature that endanger the population seriously. It is not a matter of improvising as we go along, but of acting according to a well-prepared plan.” 

REDES works in co-ordination with ADES and MS in El Salvador, both of whom support its activities. 

Ricardo Martínez is journalist and MS development worker in El Salvador.