A. Situation Analysis
Description of the Disaster
For the time being, weather conditions in the country have improved and no further damage from the rains has been detected, which has allowed communities to begin the post-emergency recovery phase; the Red Cross Society of Panama is continuously monitoring the affected areas through its provincial branches.
The National Civil Protection System (SINAPROC for its acronym in Spanish) is also still monitoring all of the areas that were affected by Hurricane Otto through its national emergency operations centre (EOC).
The Ministry of Health (MINSA) continues with its daily health promotion and vector control programming throughout the country. In the event of another emergency, it will activate its contingency plan to respond to the communities that may be affected, as well as to the population through disease prevention, vaccination and fumigation of flooded areas. At the moment it is just conducting its usual efforts throughout the country.
Summary of action taken
The Red Cross Society of Panama (RCSP) deployed a three-volunteer group from headquarters to the province of Chiriquí, specifically to the district of Barú, to perform assessments, monitoring and the first distributions in the affected areas; this was done jointly with volunteers from Barú, Santiago and David, who distributed 120 hygiene kits to families in Villa del Carmen in Barú.
An EOC was set up at RCSP’s facilities to coordinate the response actions in the affected areas. The RCSP’s headquarters has also been set up as a collection centre, and it is receiving support from around 80 volunteers.
