UNDRR News

The latest news from the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), the lead UN agency for the coordination of disaster risk reduction (DRR).

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean

Mudslides in Mocoa, Colombia (Photo: Cruz Roja Colombiana)
Update

As the reported death toll from Saturday’s mudslide disaster rose to 273, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction, Mr. Robert Glasser, extended his condolences to the people of Colombia and the affected communities of Mocoa on the loss of life caused by the heavy rains and mudslides exacerbated by deforestation...

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean
The General Hospital in Mexico City was among the health facilities that collapsed during the 1985 earthquake (Photo: USGS)
Update

Mexico City’s devastating, 8.1-magnitude earthquake of 1985 was a stark illustration of the disaster risks faced by the health sector, but it also triggered what became a global effort to protect hospitals from hazards.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean
Heads of delegations gather to mark the conclusion of three days of talks that saw the endorsment of a landmark regional disaster risk reduction plan for the Americas (Photo: Public Safety Canada)
Update

The Americas region today took a landmark step on the road to resilience by adopting an action plan to tackle the huge array of natural and human-induced hazards that its dozens of countries and territories face.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean
Baillie the Border Collie, a highly-skilled search and rescue dog, pictured here with her handler Mr. Kit Huffer, has become a star at the Americas region's top disaster risk reduction conference (Photo: Public Safety Canada/UNISDR)
Update

Baillie the Border Collie stands motionless, eyeballing her handler, then springs into action when he gives the command: “Find it!” The four-year-old is part of the Canada Task Force 2 Disaster Response Team, among the thousand delegates at the 5 th Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Americas.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean
The Fort McMurray wildfire was a key test for the resilience of businesses in Canada (Photo: DarrenRD)
Update

Canadian businesses have joined a UN-backed drive to bolster resilience to natural and human-induced hazards, sending a strong signal during the Americas region’s top disaster risk reduction conference.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean
Ms. Carmen Moreno, Executive Secretary of the Inter-American Commission of Women, said that empowering women is a critical means to reduce disaster risk (Photo: Public Safety Canada/UNISDR)
Update

Empowering women to tackle the threats that natural and human-induced hazards pose to their communities is a critical means to reduce the risk of disasters, delegates at a conference on the Americas said today.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean
Algonquin Nation Elder Ms. Rose Wawatie (front) leads the opening ceremony for the 5th Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Americas, flanked by (from left) Métis Elder Mr. Jim Durocher, Inuit Elder Mr. David Serkoak, and Mohawk Nation Elder Mr. Kevin Ka’nahsohon Deer (Photo: Public Safety Canada/UNISDR)
Update

The concerns and capacities of indigenous peoples need to be taken into account at all times when it comes to curbing disaster risk, leading members of communities from across the Americas said today at a high-level conference.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean
Mr. Ralph Goodale, Canada’s Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, said the 5th Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Americas is set to endorse a "robust" plan for curbing the risks posed by natural and human-induced hazards (Photo: Public Safety Canada/UNISDR)
Update

The vast Americas region today started a high-level conference on a wide-ranging plan that will seek to reduce the risks posed by natural and human-induced hazards.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean
The 5th Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Americas is a key step on the road to greater resilience to natural and human-induced hazards
Update

Governments from across the Americas are gathering this week in Canada for a high-level conference where they aim to make their vast region more resilient by adopting a plan to curb the risks posed by natural and human-induced hazards.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean
The town of Les Cayes after it was hit by Hurricane Matthew (credit: MINUSTAH)
Update

The 5th Regional Platform for the Americas opens in Montreal next Tuesday. Hurricane Matthew affected several countries in the Region but none worse than Haiti. The three year recovery effort comes with a price tag of US$2.72 billion following losses estimated at US$2.8 billion.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean

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