What we’re watching: Weekly disaster update, December 16
Editor’s note: Due to the holidays and a CDP team retreat, the next weekly disaster update blog post will be published the week of Jan. 13, 2025. We hope you and yours have a safe and happy holiday season.
We know all too well that disaster can strike anytime, anywhere in the world. Some disasters make headlines; others do not. Here at the Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP), we monitor the status of disasters worldwide and compile a list of the ones we’re tracking weekly, along with relevant disaster-related media coverage.
Here’s what we’re watching for the week of Dec. 16, 2024 .
New or Emerging Disasters
Cyclone Chido – Mayotte, Mozambique: On Dec. 14, Mayotte, a small French territory in the Indian Ocean, experienced its worst storm in 90 years. Cyclone Chido, a Category 4 storm, razed the archipelago, cutting electricity, drinking water and internet.
With winds up to 136 mph, the storm destroyed hospitals and schools and leveled entire neighborhoods. Rescuers from France could not reach the islands for three days after the storm hit. At least 19 people died, and more than 830 were injured; however, this number is expected to rise dramatically into the hundreds, if not thousands, as rescue efforts continue. At least 100,000 people have been sheltered in emergency centers.
The system weakened to a tropical storm as it made landfall in Mozambique on Dec. 15, when nearly 400,000 people received warnings to evacuate. At least one person has died, 35 have been injured, and 160,000 people need assistance. It is estimated that 5,800 homes have been destroyed.
Wildfire – Franklin County, California: A wind-driven wildfire, which started on Monday, Dec. 9, in Malibu, caused the evacuations of 20,000 people in Franklin County. While 54% of the fire has been contained, it has burned over 4,000 acres.
Students and teachers at Pepperdine University were ordered to shelter in place, many of them in the library as the flames “licked the windows” outside. A total of 46 structures have been affected, with eight homes destroyed and other homes and buildings damaged.
To learn more about California wildfires, head to CDP’s 2024 North American Wildfires profile.
Tornado – Scotts Valley, California: A rare tornado struck Northwest California, prompting the first tornado warning in San Francisco’s history. Several people were injured as cars flipped over, debris flew through the air, and trees were downed in the 90 mph winds.
Most homes in California do not have basements, and residents are not accustomed to tornado safety, so finding a suitable place to shelter during a tornado is difficult.
Earthquake – Vanuatu: A 7.3 earthquake hit the remote Pacific Island nation of Vanuatu on Dec. 17 (local time). At least 14 people have died, and hundreds more injured, but the true number of affected people is still unknown as communications are down in the country. The extent of the damage to infrastructure is considerable.
The earthquake spurred landslides, collapsed buildings and crushed cars, with many people expected to be buried under the rubble.
Previous/Ongoing Disasters
Dengue Fever – The Americas: The Pan American Health Organization reports that there have been 12.6 million cases of Dengue fever this year, which is triple the number recorded in 2023. The sharp increase in case reports is due to warming temperatures and erratic weather patterns, which increase the spread of mosquito habitats, along with poor urban planning and rapid population increase.
There have been over 7,700 fatalities, a 200% increase since last year, with the virus spreading to previously unaffected areas. Brazil leads with 10 million cases, followed by Argentina with 580,000 cases. In the United States, California, Florida, and Texas recorded local transmissions this year. The current outbreak is the deadliest and most widespread on record.
Complex Humanitarian Emergencies – The Sahel Regional Crisis
Women and girls face the brunt of violence in conflict, although they are rarely involved in decision-making around conflicts and peace and security matters. Sexual violence and other forms of gender-based violence (GBV) are frequently used as tactical weapons in war, aiming to terrorize and control populations. Displacement, instability and the destruction of facilities expose women and girls to even more exploitation and abuse. For the next round of Complex Humanitarian Emergency (CHE) updates, CDP will focus on how these crises affect women and girls.
The core countries of the Sahel region facing the brunt of the current humanitarian crisis include Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali. This area is considered the global epicenter of terrorist violence, led by military jihadist juntas. Consequently, at least 3.3 million people have been displaced, often more than once and often across borders. Displacement, in addition to political instability, puts women and children, particularly, at risk of trafficking, abuse, exploitation, as well as the denial of resources, opportunities and assistance. Displaced people often face inadequate living conditions which expose them to protection risks.
Food insecurity and poverty are the major drivers of the increase in GBV incidents in the Sahel region (with non-state armed groups, gender norms and crime contributing, respectively). Women in the region are often responsible for fetching food, water and wood. As food and potable water become harder to obtain, women must travel longer distances to find them, which exposes them to protection risks. Additionally, because they are the main providers of these resources for their families, women often sacrifice food and water for themselves to feed others, increasing their risks of hunger, disease and malnourishment.
Children who have been separated from their families in the course of migration are often recruited into non-state armed groups and exposed to horrific violence, which makes it difficult for them to reintegrate into their communities. Additionally, many children in the Sahel have known little more than a life of displacement and, consequently, have been denied the stability and benefits that school can bring. The repercussions make it very difficult for them to realize a better future for themselves.
In addition to the disasters listed above, we are actively monitoring the following disasters or humanitarian emergencies. For more information, see the relevant disaster profiles, which are updated regularly.
- Sudan Humanitarian Crisis
- Horn of Africa Hunger Crisis
- Gaza-Israeli Humanitarian Crisis
- Afghanistan’s Humanitarian Crisis
What We’re Reading
- For humanitarians, climate and conflict are becoming harder to separate – The New Humanitarian: “Amid a wave of research on climate change and ungoverned spaces, a recent report by the International Crisis Group on Somalia found the effects of global warming played a key part in the conflict dynamics of the country’s civil war. The paper recommended the government ‘consider making climate resilience a central part of its efforts to engage [its adversary] al-Shabab in talks.’”
- The discarded women of Lebanon – The New York Times: “Lebanon has about 200,000 migrant workers, mostly women, according to surveys by U.N. agencies and human rights groups, with some groups estimating even more…Many say employers confiscated their passports, paid pennies per hour, and gave them few if any days off. Some say they were abused.”
- Malaria cases rise for fifth year as disasters and resistance hamper control efforts – The Guardian: “…the climate crisis is increasing rates of extreme weather events that cause flooding, creating breeding grounds for mosquitoes and disrupting access to healthcare in countries such as Pakistan and Madagascar, the report said.”
- Cholera, Zika and West Nile: The deadly diseases that sweep in after hurricanes – BBC: “One of the biggest impacts of hurricanes and other tropical cyclones is thought to be gastrointestinal infections, with communities in the storm’s path becoming exposed to the kind of diseases which might traditionally be associated with extreme poverty. Studies have found that hurricanes have caused spates of cholera across the American coastal south, while a 2023 study noted that typhoons in Taiwan had led to an increased burden of intestinal diseases, and infections which later progressed to sepsis.”
A moment of hope… To restore the population of Amur tigers in Russia, six unrelated tiger cubs found as orphans were raised in semi-captivity and taught how to survive in the wild. The cubs were then released as subadults (18 months old) in the Amur region of Russia. They wore GPS collars as scientists watched their movements. Two cubs, released over 100 miles apart, reunited when a male tiger, Boris, walked for days and did not stop until he reached the den of a female tiger, Svetlana. Six months later, a litter of Amur kittens was born.
Gina DeLuca
Content Development Associate
