Hurricane Felix in Nicaragua (2007)

1. Hurricane Felix in Nicaragua (2007) DRM with a fire management perspective Pieter van Lierop Forestry Officer (Fire Management)

2. Hurricane Felix • 4 September 2007 • Category 5 Shaffir Simpson Scale • Affected region: the North Atlantic Autonomous Region (RAAN) of Nicaragua • 1 166 579 Has. affected • > 300 people died • 39 000 families affected

3. RAAN • Pine Forest (P. caribea) southern border of nat. pine forests in the Americas • Rain forests • 43 % of national forests • 49 % owned by indigenous groups • 35 % private Economical activities: • Fishery • Forestry • Agriculture

5. Damage and needs assessment Evaluation of environmental damages: • Ecosystems --------increased fire risk • Economical: • Agriculture: loss of crops, access to crops, lack of seed and equipment • Fishery: loss of equipment and contaminated rivers • Forestry: loss of construction and commercial wood • Households: Loss of houses

6. Coordination • A Response Plan from the United Nations including FAO. • United Nations Emergency Technical Team (UNETT) implemented agriculture, livestock, fishery and forestry activities as part of the immediate response and as first-aid interventions in emergency situations. • FAO’s interventions USD 6.9 millions. Activities implemented with programmatic approach to guarantee complementarity among all the emergency projects. • Donor funded: the European Commission, Spain, Denmark and Austria +FAO’s Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP).

7. Replace lost assets • 240 houses rebuild in 8 communities, using the fallen trees. • Together with training on tree extraction, use of saw mills, chain saws etc

8. Restoration of capabilities & services In the fishery sector: • 1,500 fishermentobesupliedwith new fishingequipment In agriculture: • Seed (beans, maiz) for 20,512 familieswholosttheircrops • (togetherwithawarenessraisingregardingfire use)

9. Reconstruction & investment • Rehabilitation of 832 kms of secondary roads and fire breaks • 7 bridges rebuilt for transport of brigades, but also local population

10. Prevention and mitigation activities • Extraction of fallen trees (to rebuild houses)—decreasing fuelloads • Awareness campaign during dry season (M-A): • Radio • Most effective: church sermons: no traditional burning this year in dry season • Community based fire management crews working on prevention • Watch towers

11. Warning • Building of 8 new watch towers • Radio communication system • Training of observers (local population)

12. SYSTEM OF EARLY ALERT Towers system Communication system

13. Preparedness • Training of 101 extension staff • Training voluntary fire crews in municipalities with highest fire risk: • 2,352 community members • 40 communities • 346 voluntary fire brigades • Equipment of fire crews

14. Challenges after emergency projects • To integrate the trained and experienced staff contracted by the projects in regional agencies activities. • To maintain capacity building efforts and the regional prevention and firecontrol system by the Regional Government in the RAAN, including prevention and awareness raising activities. • To integrate the fire management activities in the broader forest and landscape management through an Integrated and Community Based Fire Management.

15. THANK YOU