2009-04-13
AMDA Emergency Bulletin II: Emergency Relief for Earthquake in Italy

Upon their arrival in Rome on April 11th, the team from AMDA Headquarters reached L'Aquila, the most afflicted area, later that day.?The area is known for its cold climate where nearby mountains are still covered in snow. *UNITALSI (AMDA's collaborating partner in Italy) provided the transportation for the team and jointly carried out disaster assessment on 12th Apr. '09, the following day. The details are as follows:

1. At a local university hospital, the team assessed the evacuation centers set in the parking lot as well as the temporary hospital units replacing the local hospital. Though the external damage was not as apparent, the original hospital facility is not functioning at all due to the possible structural damage to the building. While 100 out of 300 inpatients are still remaining in the temporary hospital units, the rest were transferred to other hospitals outside the area.

2. Under the guidance of local firefighters, the team assessed the old town known for many of its' historical buildings. The town is comprised of narrow alleyways with stone-built walls that start to crumble, hence leading the residents to evacuate. Whilst the lifelines such as electricity and water supply being alive, the area had turned to hollow. Everywhere alarms were going off and shops were left unattended with the lights still turned on showing the sudden evacuation of the town. The search for missing persons is still continued in some parts of the town.

3. The team visited Bagno evacuation camp currently holding 550 evacuees. The Interior Ministry has provided emergency tents for each family with generators supplying electricity for the tent. Enough temporary toilets include the special units for the disabled persons have also been set up. In total, 150 volunteers are working in the camp.

The assessment revealed that the local emergency need is well coordinated and fulfilled. AMDA team will discuss further initiatives with UNITALSI.

According to AFP, the death toll as of 11th Apr. '09 is 293 with 10,000 houses destroyed and 40,000 people being displaced.

*Unione Nazionale Italiana Trasporto Ammalati a Lourdes e Santuari Internazionali. UNITALSI, a Catholic based Italian national organization supporting the transportation for the disabled persons, is now providing aid assistance and temporary shelters in L'Aquila.

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