Bangladesh Cyclone Sidr

Tropical Cyclone Sidr slammed into Bangladesh’s south coast on Nov. 15, 2007, packing winds of up to 140 miles per hour and tidal waves that swept away homes, crops and livestock.

The cyclone, the worst to hit Bangladesh since the 1991 cyclonic disaster, affected 6.8 million people, claiming the lives of more than 3,000. The cyclone’s effect extended over 1,700 areas causing massive damage to houses, buildings, roads and other infrastructure. The main cause of death has been attributed to trees falling onto flimsy homes made of thatch, bamboo and tin.

The most affected areas were the 12 districts of Patuakhali, Borguna, Bagerhat, Bhola, Sarkhira, Barisal, Khulna, Gopalganj, Shariatpur, Pirozpur, Jaalokathi and Gopalganj. More than a million households and hectares of land worth billions of Bangladeshi taka were devastated.

Response program

Habitat for Humanity has been active in Bangladesh since 1999, building and rehabilitating more than 1,100 homes. It operates mainly through Habitat Resource Centers and related satellite centers in local communities. Habitat for Humanity Bangladesh initiated a disaster response program to assist 280 families affected by Cyclone Sidr. The overall strategy is being implemented in two phases:

Phase 1:

• Build 280 core houses through mobile Habitat Resource Centers. The core houses consist of permanent super-structures that provide the structural support for families to put up temporary walls until they can afford to build permanent walls.

• Establish mobile Habitat Resource Centers, all-purpose building centers, for mass production and storage of building materials for core shelter units.

Phase 2:

• Transition mobile Habitat Resource Centers into Habitat satellite offices for overall impact assessment of families served after completion of Phase 1 and to offer Habitat’s regular microfinance services for conversion of core shelters into permanent cyclone-resistant homes.

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