MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

UN begins emergency relief for flood-hit Uruguay

Along the Rio Negro river thousands houses are under the water

The United Nations is mobilizing a Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team for deployment to Uruguay early next week in the wake of the worst floods to hit the country in half a century.

The UNDAC team is being sent following an official request for support from the Government of Uruguay, where flooding has already driven some 12,000 people from their homes, and has affected more than 110,000 people overall. Nine of the country's 19 counties have experienced extensive flooding or significant damages to infrastructure and agriculture. Displaced people are being housed in shelters, including stadiums and sport institutions, and basic supplies are being delivered, according to an update from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. But OCHA also warned that the high number of affected people and harsh weather conditions mean that additional assistance is needed. Thousands of houses have been damaged, as has much of the public infrastructure, including the water supply, sewer and drainage systems, power and telephone lines, roads, agricultural land and municipal buildings. Many of those affected are poor and vulnerable persons such as women, children and the elderly. The situation is expected to worsen when the flood waters reach low-lying areas, according to OCHA, which has already made an emergency cash grant of 30,000 US dollars available for relief activities. Uruguay this week declared the flooded areas a "national disaster" which enables the appropriation of special funds from the national budget in support of the regions. These funds could total 45 million US dollars under the National Emergencies System to which another 15 million US dollars from an Inter American Development Bank special fund could eventually be added. According to the latest reports water in the worst hit areas has begun to gradually fall back and some basic services such as drinking water have been restored to the main populated areas. Police patrols in boats and canoes have been sent to some locations where there are growing complaints about thefts and looting in homes flooded which owners were forced to abandon. Some neighbours in flooded areas along the river Rio Negro which cuts Uruguay in half and has three hydroelectric dams, have organized and are in the process of lodging a formal demand against the government managed energy company for "incompetence" and "mishandling" of water outflows. Apparently instead of regulating outflows as water levels rose, the dams' locks were only opened at last moment fearing an over flow or even worse a burst.