Mexico requests UN emergency team after severe flooding

(New York, 6 November 2007): Following a request from the Government of Mexico, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is mobilizing a United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination team (UNDAC) in support of the efforts of the Government in responding to the floods that have devastated Tabasco State.

The heavy rains that began on 28 October have flooded approximately 80% of the state of Tabasco, including some 17 municipalities and 670 localities. The Governor of Tabasco has said that 350,000 people are trapped in their homes and estimates that flooding has affected half the state's 2.1 million residents and inundated about 700,000 homes. Crops have been destroyed, livestock have been killed and most of the state's businesses have been affected. In addition, rains have caused landslides that damaged the road network. More than 100 medical centres have been affected, in addition to 300 schools. Electricity is out for 90% of the residents of the capital, Villahermosa. In the State of Chiapas, 11,000 people are affected, and some 5,000 houses have been damaged.

Under the leadership of President Felipe Calderon, more than 8,000 personnel from the Marines, the Army and the Civil Defence have been mobilized, in addition to more than 10,000 volunteers. Some 400 vehicles have been made available to ensure transportation to safe areas or shelters. More than 400 doctors and health workers have been deployed to more than 300 towns in the region to detect and prevent potential disease outbreaks. The Mexican Red Cross has distributed food, medicines, water, clothing, diapers and canned food.

"The Government of Mexico has worked tirelessly in responding to these devastating floods," said John Holmes, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. "The United Nations stands ready to assist in any way that it can," he added.

For further information, please call: Stephanie Bunker, OCHA-New York, +1 917 367 5126, mobile +1 917 892 1679; Elisabeth Byrs, OCHA-Geneva, +41 22 917 2653, mobile, +41 79 473 4570. OCHA press releases are available at http://ochaonline.un.org or www.reliefweb.int.