Disasters and emergency response

A weekend storm battered buildings in Banteay Meanchey province’s Thma Pouk district, leaving hundreds affected by damage to houses and schools across the area. Deab Chhun, Thma Puok district deputy governor, said strong winds and rain swept through Komrou, Thmor Puok and Phoum Thmey communes at ...

Lightning killed two people sheltering from rain on Wednesday in Preah Sihanouk’s Stung Hav district. Ros Ky, the district police chief, said Khem Nget, a 40-year-old motodop from Kampot, and a second victim identified only as Vanny, 50, were taking shelter near Vanny’s home in Tomnup ...

The Asian Development Bank announced Wednesday that it will provide $81.7 million, including a $6.7 million grant from Australia, in additional financing to help Cambodia recover from catastrophic floods in late 2013. The flooding affected 1.7 million people and caused an estimated $356 million in damage. ...

Cambodia’s beleaguered fire department may have a future high-tech solution to its problems after a team of young scientists from Norton University competing in the 4th Malaysian International Robot Competitions (MIRoC) last week placed third in the Fire Fighting Robot category. The annual event, held this ...

មន្ត្រី​នគរបាល​ក្រសួង​មហាផ្ទៃ បាន​បង្ហាញ​ថា ចាប់​ពី​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​១៣ ដល់​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​១៥ ខែ​មេសា នៃ​ពិធី​បុណ្យ​ចូល​ឆ្នាំ​ខ្មែរ​ឆ្នាំ​នេះ មាន​គ្រោះ​ថ្នាក់​ចរាចរណ៍​កើត​ឡើង​នៅ​ទូទាំង​ប្រទេស​ជិត ១០០​ករណី និង​បណ្ដាល​ឲ្យ​មាន​មនុស្ស​ស្លាប់ និង​របួស​ជាង ២០០​នាក់។ របាយការណ៍​បឋម​ស្ដីពី​គ្រោះ​ថ្នាក់​ចរាចរណ៍​ក្នុង​អំឡុង​ពេល​នៃ​ពិធី​ បុណ្យ​ចូល​ឆ្នាំ​ខ្មែរ ឆ្នាំ​២០១៤ នេះ មាន​ចំនួន​កើន​ឡើង​ខ្ពស់​ជាង​ឆ្នាំ​កន្លង​ទៅ។ លោក គៀត ច័ន្ទថារិទ្ធ មន្ត្រី​នាំ​ពាក្យ​អគ្គស្នងការដ្ឋាន​នគរបាល​ជាតិ​នៃ​ក្រសួង​មហាផ្ទៃ មាន​ប្រសាសន៍​ថា គិត​ចាប់​ពី​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​១៣ និង​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​១៥ ខែ​មេសា មាន​គ្រោះ​ថ្នាក់​ចរាចរណ៍​នៅ​ទូទាំង​ប្រទេស​កើត​ឡើង​ជិត ១០០​ករណី និង​ស្លាប់​មនុស្ស​ជិត ៣០​នាក់ ព្រម​ទាំង​មាន​របួស​ធ្ងន់​ស្រាល​ជិត ២០០​នាក់។ លោក​បន្ត​ថា បើ​ប្រៀបធៀប​៣​ថ្ងៃ​ដូច​គ្នា​ឆ្នាំ​២០១៣ កន្លង​ទៅ ចំនួន​គ្រោះ​ថ្នាក់​នេះ​បាន​កើន​ឡើង​ជាង ៣០​ភាគរយ៖ «សរុប ​រួម ៣​ថ្ងៃ​ហ្នឹង គឺ​គ្រោះ​ថ្នាក់ ៩៨​លើក បណ្ដាល​ឲ្យ​មនុស្ស​ស្លាប់ ២៩​នាក់ រង​របួស ១៨៧​នាក់ ក្នុង​នោះ​របួស​ធ្ងន់ ១៣១​នាក់ និង​របួស​ស្រាល ៥៦​នាក់។ ...

The National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) released a report yesterday showing that only $356 million was spent on the restoration of infrastructure destroyed by last year’s floods – far below the $500 million in damage estimated beforehand. Nhim Vanda, vice chairman of the NCDM, said ...

The National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) said Tuesday that it needs an additional $217 million from donors and NGOs to help recovery efforts from the floods of September and October 2013. A document accompanying the Post-Flood Early Recovery Needs Assessment Report, prepared by the ...

A weekend storm surge that saw torrential downpours hit the capital had far more dire consequences outside of Phnom Penh, where hundreds of families were affected and at least one man was killed. At least 675 homes in eight provinces were damaged in sudden thunderstorms that ...

Officials said two people were killed on Tuesday by separate lightning strikes in Pailin and Kompong Cham provinces as the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology issued a warning about seasonal storms spreading across the country. Searing temperatures and the approach of wet season ignited the ...

In the wake of two deaths from separate lightning strikes this week, the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology issued a notice yesterday warning against potentially devastating storms lasting from today until Sunday. ...

Residents along Cambodia’s coastline may want to relocate to higher ground in the wake of a climate-change assessment that predicts much of the Kingdom’s coast could be submerged by rising sea levels. Based on predictive models that take into account global temperature trends and melting ice ...

Cambodia on Wednesday continued distributing China-donated relief items to some 3,088 families, who are victims of last year’s flood, HIV/ AIDS patients, disabled people and orphans. Cambodian Red Cross president Bun Rany, the wife of Prime Minister Hun Sen, and Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Bu Jianguo ...

“From my view, I don’t want to have it, but it is development, we can’t stop them,” says Srekor’s village chief, Leang Saroeurn. Cambodia’s impressive yearly GDP growth rates of 7 percent for the last decade have come, in part, through a ravenous consumption of the countries ...

A 39-year-old woman and two young children are missing and presumed dead after their home in Preah Prasap commune collapsed into the Mekong River on Tuesday night, a tragedy villagers are blaming on illegal sand dredging of the riverbed. Four other people were injured as a ...

Cambodia suffers from severe annual flooding, and many people who can’t swim die every year as a result. An innovative solution to the generations-old problem may have been found, not by policy hacks or scientists, but by children. A group of 11-year-olds from Cambodia’s one-of-a-kind Liger ...

Thanks to a crowd-sourcing campaign spearheaded by grassroots map developers Urban Voice Cambodia, residents of Phnom Penh can now access a map pinpointing flood-prone areas in the capital during rainy season. Updated online yesterday, the map was generated by citizens, who contributed 119 reports of flooding over a ...

Authorities in Kratie and Stung Treng provinces on Thursday said that they were investigating an unusual change of color in the Mekong River to a muddy, dark brown that was unnatural for this time of the year and was worrying residents. Since the beginning of this ...

China’s humanitarian assistance has helped relieve difficulties of flood- hit families, HIV/AIDS victims, elderly, disabled and poor people in Cambodia, beneficiaries said Friday. The Chinese government donated one million U.S. dollars to Cambodia in October for people who have faced hardships due to severe flooding last ...

Smoke billowed over Phnom Penh International Airport and people lay on the grass verges near an aircraft simulator on Friday as hundreds of rescue service personnel and firefighters took part in the airport’s fourth-ever full-scale emergency exercise. Hundreds of soldiers and police, as well as actors ...

More than 31,000 households were evacuated and 168 people died across 20 provinces during this year’s rainy-season flooding, according to the Humanitarian Response Forum (HRF), which released its final report on the flooding Monday. In general, flooding did not affect Cambodia as badly as in 2011, ...

Stronger disaster planning is needed to avoid future devastation and loss of life caused by flooding, according to a report published by World Vision yesterday. The report, titled Cities Prepare, recommends that the Cambodian government and civil society work to place “a stronger emphasis on disaster risk ...

Banteay Meanchey province’s former governor got a surprise Monday when he attended a ceremony in Phnom Penh expecting to receive a donation of 200 power tillers from Chinese officials, but received eight small water pumps instead. Former Banteay Meanchey governor Oung Oeun and the governor ...

China’s Yunnan province on Monday provided 200 agricultural engines to Cambodia’s northwestern Banteay Meanchey province for post-flood rehabilitation. A handover ceremony was held here between Yu Dingcheng, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the Yunnan Provincial People ‘s Congress, and Oung Oeun, chief of the ...

China’s Yunnan province on Monday provided 200 agricultural engines to Cambodia’s northwestern Banteay Meanchey province for post-flood rehabilitation. A handover ceremony was held here between Yu Dingcheng, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the Yunnan Provincial People ‘s Congress, and Oung Oeun, chief of the ...