OCHA Situation Report No. 1
Galeras Volcano - Colombia
7 April 2006


This situation report is based on information provided to OCHA by the
office of the UN Resident Coordinator in Colombia, and reports from the
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the
Red Cross of Colombia.

Situation

1. Increased seismic activity of the volcano Galeras, located in the
department of Narino in south-western Colombia, led the Colombian
Institute of Geology and Mining (INGEOMINAS) to change its alert phase
to Level II (likely eruption in days or weeks) on 28 March 2006. In
2005, the alert phase stood at Level II twice: for a month and a half in
April/May, and for 24 days in November.

2. According to information provided by INGEOMINAS on 4 April, there is
a permanent addition of solidified lava to the dome at the summit of the
main crater, the outer layer of the dome has cooled in comparison to
previous weeks, and micro-seismic activity is gradually decreasing both
in terms of number of earthquakes and energy. (1)

3. Flights over the top of the volcano over the past few days have
confirmed that the main crater is capped and that gas and ash emissions
are taking place in small quantity. Steam columns rose up to 500 m above
the volcano. This behaviour has historically preceded volcanic
eruptions. The National Director of INGEOMINAS has arrived from Bogota
and declared that the situation is "extremely critical". In the town of
Pasto, a strong smell of sulphur prevails.

4. Intense rainfall has affected the area during the last hours. The
Instituto Nacional de Vias (INVIAS) is removing the debris brought by
the rains that is obstructing circulation along the main road connecting
Pasto, La Florida, and Narino municipalities. The National Police has
restricted vehicle circulation in these areas from 21:00 to 07:00.

Impact

5. Several communities around the volcano are at high risk in Pasto,
Narino and La Florida. According to updated figures from the National
Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE), 8,463 residents would
need to be evacuated, as indicated in the table below:

|--------------+----------+---------|
| Municipality | Families | Persons |
|--------------+----------+---------|
| Pasto        |    1,220 |   5,363 |
|--------------+----------+---------|
| Narino       |      140 |     500 |
|--------------+----------+---------|
| La Florida   |      600 |   2,600 |
|--------------+----------+---------|
| Total        |    1,960 |   8,463 |
|--------------+----------+---------|


6. A rental subsidy has been made available to households as an
incentive to voluntarily abandon areas at risk. According to the CRC, a
high percentage of families from Narino and La Florida have opted to
evacuate using this option.

7. Despite an information campaign on the need to evacuate and the
availability of the subsidy, the CRC reports that approximately 7,242
people remain in at-risk areas and many temporary shelters remain empty.
Twelve temporary reception centres with medical assistance (7 in Pasto,
4 in La Florida, and one in Narino) are ready to receive the population
unwilling to resort to the rental subsidy option. According to the Red
Cross, as of 6 April, 299 households (1,221 persons) have moved to 5
temporary shelters (El Vergel, Potreros, Fontibon, El Rosal, Postobon)
in Pasto municipality.

National and Local Response

8. The Government has activated its National Operations Committee and
its committees at department and municipal level (CREPAD and CLOPAD);
contingency plans, and reactivated the order to evacuate high-risk
areas.

9. The preventive Disaster Zone status given to the area during the
alert phase in November 2005 continues to exist. Civil Defense has
declared an Orange Alert for Pasto and has been mobilizing its own
resources as well as deploying volunteers to the zone.

10. The Government has signed an agreement with the Colombian Red Cross
(CRC), through the National Disaster Fund (Fondo Nacional de
Calamidades), whereby the CRC will manage evacuation transport
subsidies, rental subsidies, and the economic support that will be given
to evacuating families for the transportation and care of their animals.

11. The CRC, which is part of National Operations Committee, has
mobilized response teams. In Pasto, an initial team of 22 health and
relief personnel of the Narino branch mobilized to support evacuation
and shelter operations has been reinforced by a team of 57 staff and
volunteers of the Cauca, Quindio, Risaralda, and Valle branches
specialised in medical care, search and rescue, water and sanitation,
temporary shelter management, and damage assessment. A third team of
close to 230 people from the Cundinamarca, Boyaca, Caldas, Quindio, and
Tolima branches are ready to be deployed to the area within 24 hours
should the need arise.

12. The Government is taking measures to improve living conditions in
temporary shelters and access to basic services. Whereas temporary
shelters were initially set up with tents and plastic sheeting, they are
being improved or built with corrugated iron sheeting and wooden
structures. Nevertheless, a large number of tents remain in some of the
shelters.

13. While the local municipal authorities will continue to coordinate
matters related to camp management, the CRC will assume the
responsibility to manage temporary shelters and has signed agreements to
this effect with the mayors of Pasto, La Florida and Narino.

14. The CRC and Oxfam GB undertook a survey to evaluate SPHERE standards
compliance in 12 temporary shelters. At the time of this report, there
is no information on the results of the survey.

15. The Red Cross movement (IFRC, and the national societies of
Colombia, France, The Netherlands, Ecuador, Spain and the US) are
supporting local health authorities and providing direct medical
assistance in the shelters. The National Police has established a
presence in all shelters, and Civil Defense is supporting food
distribution in the temporary shelters in Pasto.

International response

16. The UN System's Technical Emergency Team (UNETE) met on 31 March to
review the situation and agreed that WFP, OIM, WHO and OCHA would each
deploy a staff member to Pasto to join up with WHO, UNHCR, OIM and UNDSS
staff already in the area and form a UN team that will provide technical
assistance to the local authorities as required. WHO will coordinate the
team given its experience in the area and knowledge of the situation.
OCHA has sent a staff member and a vehicle to Pasto in order to
logistically and technically support the UN team.

17. OPS/WHO is providing technical support to the health authorities.
Its sub-office in Pasto has visited three temporary shelters to monitor
work in progress and assess needs. During the visit, WHO provided
technical guidance to improve the quality of the centres and strengthen
the capacity of the local authorities to provide psychosocial services.

18. At Bogota level, OCHA will coordinate the UNETE together with WHO
and will ensure permanent contact with the National Disaster
Preparedness and Response System in order to guarantee a timely and
adequate flow of information. The UNETE will meet on a weekly basis to
monitor the evolution of the situation.

19 . OCHA is in close contact with the Office of the United Nations
Resident Coordinator in Colombia and will revert with further
information as it becomes available.

20. OCHA is prepared to accept cash contributions to be used for
immediate relief assistance, in support of the UN Resident Coordinator
in Colombia.

21. This situation report, together with further information on other
ongoing emergencies is also available on the OCHA Internet Website at
http://www.reliefweb.int

Telephone: +41-22-917 12 34
Fax: +41-22-917 00 23
E-mail: ochagva@un.org

In case of emergency only: Tel.   +41-22-917 20 10

Desk Officer:
  Ms. Marie Spaak
    E-mail: spaak@un.org
    Direct Tel. +41-22-917 21 63

Press contact:
  GVA - Ms. Elizabeth Byrs, Direct Tel. + 41-22-917 2653
  NYC - Ms. Stephanie Bunker, Direct Tel. +1-917-367 51 26
  NYC - Mr. Brian Grogan, Direct Tel. +1-212-963 11 43


Nota: (1) According to the Colombian Institute of Geology and Mining a
similar reduction of micro-seismic activity was recorded prior to the
eruptions in 1991-93.

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