Two Luxembourgers bring aid to Kinshasa
Two CGDIS personnel, Yves Legil and Jérôme Jaeger, have been deployed for three weeks in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, for a humanitarian mission, following deadly and devastating floods.
Deadly floods
Two CGDIS personnel, Yves Legil and Jérôme Jaeger, have been deployed for three weeks in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, for a humanitarian mission, following deadly and devastating floods.
“During the rainy season, there are always floods, people are used to that. But this time it was much more violent. In the memory of inhabitants, the situation has never been so serious. Whole neighborhoods were completely flooded, then there was mud. The pipes, when they existed, exploded, the waste water was controlled…”
At the other end of the line, Yves Legil, of the CGDIS, summarizes the disaster that Kinshasa experienced a month ago. On December 12 and 13, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo was hit by heavy rains and floods. The human toll is terrible: more than 120 dead. The material toll is just as substantial: nearly 300 houses were destroyed in landslides, neighborhoods were devastated.
The rains have carved out new rivers. The houses on the edge can collapse at any time.
Photo:DR/CGDIS/Yves Legil
The rains have carved out new rivers. The houses on the edge can collapse at any time.
Photo:DR/CGDIS/Yves Legil
Yves Legil and Jerome Jaeger.
Photo:DR/CGDIS/Yves Legil
Torrential rains and floods swept away nearly 300 homes, and carried away tons of waste that contaminates the water.
Photo:DR/CGDIS/Yves Legil
The UNDAC team has a role in aid coordination and needs assessment.
Photo:DR/CGDIS/Yves Legil
Entire neighborhoods of Kinshasa were flooded.
Photo:DR/CGDIS/Yves Legil
Based on field observations, the UNDAC team lists the priorities.
Photo:DR/CGDIS/Yves Legil
Entire neighborhoods of Kinshasa were flooded.
Photo:DR/CGDIS/Yves Legil
This landscape of desolation has been Yves Legil’s daily life since December 22. That day he flew to Central Africa. On the 26th, he was joined by his colleague Jérôme Jaeger. The two men, members of the intervention group in charge of humanitarian missions of the CGDIS, take part in the relief operations.
The heavy rains have literally carved out new rivers, with houses now lying on the banks and in danger of collapsing.
Yves Legil, CGDIS
Yves Legil is head of the United Nations system’s emergency response team for disaster assessment and coordination (UNDAC). Jérôme Jaeger, for his part, brings his skills in the field of logistics.
“Kinshasa is a very large and very poor city. There is the center, with the shops, the embassies. And all around, neighborhoods where people live, in what they call houses…” More like slums, with precarious constructions, and where town planning rules do not exist, or are not respected. It is in these areas, with sometimes marked relief, that the floods have caused great damage.
Avoid malaria or cholera
Two main risks quickly became apparent. The first is wastewater that spreads and contaminates drinking water, and therefore the inhabitants. The second is land erosion. “There were landslides, landslides. But what is equally serious is that the heavy rains have literally carved out new rivers, with houses now standing on the banks and in danger of collapsing.”
The needs are therefore enormous and multiple. The first aid has already arrived in Kinshasa, but the work has only just begun. “We have defined shelter and housing as the primary need because people have lost everything. The second priority is to act in the area of water, sanitation and hygiene to avoid diseases such as malaria or cholera. And the third priority is the protection of children, women and vulnerable people in this context of crisis.
Our families aren’t always happy to see us go, but it’s part of our job.
Yves Legil, CGDIS
In addition to his task of coordinating short-term aid, Yves Legil and his UNDAC team therefore analyzed and assessed the situation to define medium- and long-term aid. The goal is that “the various United Nations agencies, NGOs, donors can plan their actions”.
This is obviously not the first time that Yves Legil and Jérôme Jeager have been deployed in such theaters for humanitarian missions, under different mandates, UN or others. “The last was a year ago, during the earthquake in Haiti. There was also Nepal, Jordan…”
Back soon
The particularity, with these floods in Kinshasa, is that the deployment of the two CGDIS rescuers took place at Christmas, when they were ready to spend the holidays with their families. “But we realized that there are often missions around Christmas, underlines Yves Legil. I remember going for the tsunami in Thailand in 2004 at the same time. Jérôme Jaeger also went to Sudan, for the creation of refugee camps, at Christmas time. Our families aren’t always happy to see us go, but it’s part of our job.”
Their families, the two Luxembourgers will be able to find them in a few days. A first group of rescue workers, of which they are part, will leave Kinshasa on January 13. The rest of the squad will return from the Democratic Republic of Congo on January 18.
follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Subscribe to our newsletter from 5 p.m.