A man attempts to save a vehicle swept away by flood waters in Yemen's island of Socotra November 2, 2015. (Photo: Stringer/Reuters)
Nov 04, 2015
Over 1.1 million people have been impacted--and 40,000 displaced--after a rare and powerful cyclone dumped a year's worth of rain on Yemen this week, compounding the ongoing humanitarian disaster worsened by Saudi Arabia's seven-month bombing campaign that continued through the storm.
The cyclone, dubbed Chapala, killed at least three people on Monday when it hit the island of Socotra, which is home to 50,000 people and formally part of Yemen. The storm hit the Yemeni mainland's central coast on Tuesday morning with 85 mph winds, and one man reportedly drowned when the storm hit the city of Mukalla.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, at least 450 homes sustained damage or were completely destroyed and 34 people were wounded by the storm.
"There's been severe damage the people's farms and homes... two villages have been completely submerged, roads and bridges have been totally washed away by the floods and the government didn't do a thing," said Jamal al-Awlaqi, a resident of Ataq, the capital of Shabwa province, in an interview with Reuters.
Humanitarian groups warn that the long-term impact could be far greater, in a country already devastated by ongoing war.
"Yemen is already one of the world's worst humanitarian crises," Oxfam country director for Yemen, Sajjad Mohamed Sajid, said in a statement released Wednesday. "The cyclone comes on top of seven months of non-stop fighting that has dismantled basic infrastructure, limited the availability of food and other vital supplies, cut off drinking water, destroyed livelihoods and severely damaged people's abilities to cope."
"Hospitals and schools are damaged by the fighting, and medicines are in short supply, which means that many people have no access to basic medical care or temporary shelter if they need them," Sajid continued. "Those previously displaced by the fighting are particularly at risk as many are living in make-shift tents and unsafe accommodation that is too vulnerable to withstand the impact of the cyclone."
The cyclone, however, did not stop the Saudi Arabia-led military alliance--which is backed by the United States--from launching bombs on the country. According to the Saudi-owned news channel Ekhbariya, the coalition conducted air strikes in seven separate provinces across the country on Tuesday.
The cyclone follows record-warm temperatures in nearly all of the Arabian Sea. A study published last month found that, if climate change continues to worsen, Gulf countries could be severely impacted by "unprecedented events of deadly heat," as well as extreme storms.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is web editor at In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
Over 1.1 million people have been impacted--and 40,000 displaced--after a rare and powerful cyclone dumped a year's worth of rain on Yemen this week, compounding the ongoing humanitarian disaster worsened by Saudi Arabia's seven-month bombing campaign that continued through the storm.
The cyclone, dubbed Chapala, killed at least three people on Monday when it hit the island of Socotra, which is home to 50,000 people and formally part of Yemen. The storm hit the Yemeni mainland's central coast on Tuesday morning with 85 mph winds, and one man reportedly drowned when the storm hit the city of Mukalla.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, at least 450 homes sustained damage or were completely destroyed and 34 people were wounded by the storm.
"There's been severe damage the people's farms and homes... two villages have been completely submerged, roads and bridges have been totally washed away by the floods and the government didn't do a thing," said Jamal al-Awlaqi, a resident of Ataq, the capital of Shabwa province, in an interview with Reuters.
Humanitarian groups warn that the long-term impact could be far greater, in a country already devastated by ongoing war.
"Yemen is already one of the world's worst humanitarian crises," Oxfam country director for Yemen, Sajjad Mohamed Sajid, said in a statement released Wednesday. "The cyclone comes on top of seven months of non-stop fighting that has dismantled basic infrastructure, limited the availability of food and other vital supplies, cut off drinking water, destroyed livelihoods and severely damaged people's abilities to cope."
"Hospitals and schools are damaged by the fighting, and medicines are in short supply, which means that many people have no access to basic medical care or temporary shelter if they need them," Sajid continued. "Those previously displaced by the fighting are particularly at risk as many are living in make-shift tents and unsafe accommodation that is too vulnerable to withstand the impact of the cyclone."
The cyclone, however, did not stop the Saudi Arabia-led military alliance--which is backed by the United States--from launching bombs on the country. According to the Saudi-owned news channel Ekhbariya, the coalition conducted air strikes in seven separate provinces across the country on Tuesday.
The cyclone follows record-warm temperatures in nearly all of the Arabian Sea. A study published last month found that, if climate change continues to worsen, Gulf countries could be severely impacted by "unprecedented events of deadly heat," as well as extreme storms.
Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is web editor at In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
Over 1.1 million people have been impacted--and 40,000 displaced--after a rare and powerful cyclone dumped a year's worth of rain on Yemen this week, compounding the ongoing humanitarian disaster worsened by Saudi Arabia's seven-month bombing campaign that continued through the storm.
The cyclone, dubbed Chapala, killed at least three people on Monday when it hit the island of Socotra, which is home to 50,000 people and formally part of Yemen. The storm hit the Yemeni mainland's central coast on Tuesday morning with 85 mph winds, and one man reportedly drowned when the storm hit the city of Mukalla.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, at least 450 homes sustained damage or were completely destroyed and 34 people were wounded by the storm.
"There's been severe damage the people's farms and homes... two villages have been completely submerged, roads and bridges have been totally washed away by the floods and the government didn't do a thing," said Jamal al-Awlaqi, a resident of Ataq, the capital of Shabwa province, in an interview with Reuters.
Humanitarian groups warn that the long-term impact could be far greater, in a country already devastated by ongoing war.
"Yemen is already one of the world's worst humanitarian crises," Oxfam country director for Yemen, Sajjad Mohamed Sajid, said in a statement released Wednesday. "The cyclone comes on top of seven months of non-stop fighting that has dismantled basic infrastructure, limited the availability of food and other vital supplies, cut off drinking water, destroyed livelihoods and severely damaged people's abilities to cope."
"Hospitals and schools are damaged by the fighting, and medicines are in short supply, which means that many people have no access to basic medical care or temporary shelter if they need them," Sajid continued. "Those previously displaced by the fighting are particularly at risk as many are living in make-shift tents and unsafe accommodation that is too vulnerable to withstand the impact of the cyclone."
The cyclone, however, did not stop the Saudi Arabia-led military alliance--which is backed by the United States--from launching bombs on the country. According to the Saudi-owned news channel Ekhbariya, the coalition conducted air strikes in seven separate provinces across the country on Tuesday.
The cyclone follows record-warm temperatures in nearly all of the Arabian Sea. A study published last month found that, if climate change continues to worsen, Gulf countries could be severely impacted by "unprecedented events of deadly heat," as well as extreme storms.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.