Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Egypt

Egypt: Cairo Rockslides DREF No. MDREG007 Operation Update No. 1

Attachments

GLIDE n=B0 LS-2008-000153-EGY

The International Federation's Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) is a source of un-earmarked money created by the Federation in 1985 to ensure that immediate financial support is available for Red Cross and Red Crescent response to emergencies. The DREF is a vital part of the International Federation's disaster response system and increases the ability of national societies to respond to disasters.

Period covered by this update: 10 September to 18 September, 2008.

Summary: CHF 249,198 (USD 221,153 or EUR 156,260) was allocated from the International Federation's Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) on 10 September 2008 to support the Egyptian Red Crescent (Egyptian RC) in delivering assistance to some 500 families (3,000 beneficiaries).

This update will provide information on the emergency operation the Egyptian RC is implementing since 6 September, assisting 3,000 beneficiaries in the affected area. This operation is expected to be implemented in two months, and completed by 10 November, 2008. In line with the International Federation's reporting standards, the final report (narrative and financial) is due 90 days after the end of the operation (by 10 February, 2009).

The situation

At least eight gigantic boulders, many of the size of small houses, fell onto the impoverished Manshiyet Nasser Shantytown on the outskirts of Cairo on 6 September 2008. The devastating rockslide left 98 dead and 72 injured; and 100 to 150 families lost their houses, in addition to be trapped beneath the rocks.

Residents of the area believe that some bodies are yet to be recovered. Due to the complexity of the disaster (enormous boulders to be break up) and the difficulty for heavy machine and equipment to access the site, civil defense rescuers had no tools to move the rubble, though they used sniffer-dogs in a desperate bid to find victims. They were supplemented by army units and Arab contractors bringing heavy machinery capable of lifting the rocks. To avoid hampering rescue operations and to be able to cut a railway line in order to gain access to the site with the fear that more rocks might slide down the face of the cliff, families were evacuated to a tented camp in nearby Al-Fustat district erected by the army, while other families were taken to another camp erected and managed by the Egyptian RC in Manshyiet Nasser.

The government announced the end of the rescue operations in Duweiqa on 16 September, ten days after the disaster. Tempers flared as family members began digging themselves to find the loved ones. The government promised to provide housing for those left homeless and compensation for families of the victims. A full review of housing settlements built through the country without construction permits was announced by the prime minister, as well as the creation of a commission to study the area and identify houses most at risk to further landslides. The cause of the rock fall remains unclear and investigations are continuing.