Red Cross steps up effort to provide relief
As of July 17, about 100 North Koreans were dead or missing after torrential rains swept the nation. Nearly 11,500 houses were destroyed and more than 9,000 persons were affected by the natural disaster. The International Red Cross has started rescue efforts, and if the damage becomes more serious, the IFRC said it would request relief aid from the international community. Regarding the flooding in North Korea, the International Red Cross wrote on its Internet site that entire villages have been swept away, and in other places residents were isolated because roads and bridges were destroyed. The organization also noted the destruction of public buildings, including hospitals.The International Red Cross has provided relief goods to 9,934 flood victims in the North so far, and it is closely cooperating with local offices of the U.N. and other international organizations. "We organized a 2,386-member relief team in North Korea on July 16," the international relief agency said. "We plan to allocate a disaster relief emergency fund for North Korea and to request emergency relief from the international community, as well." The latest relief activities were made after the North’s Red Cross requested help from the local delegation of the international body in Pyongyang. Alistair Henley, chief of the Red Cross’s East Asia delegation, is visiting Seoul regarding the North Korea relief problem. According to an official at the Republic of Korea National Red Cross (KNRC), Henley said to KNRC president Han Wan-sang, "There are relief goods for about 10,000 households at five warehouses [in North Korea], so we can cope with the damage right now. However, we have yet to confirm the final losses. If the situation gets worse, we will ask for relief from international society." Pyongyang has not requested help from the South’s nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) supporting North Korea. The NGOs have also not shown any sign that they are assisting the North. An official of one NGO said, "Due to the missile crisis, the situation has completely changed. In the South, too, there are many victims from the heavy rains. Under such circumstances, It is likely that no NGOs would come out to help the North."
