Story type: Story

 

VIETNAM The worst typhoon in decades

Typhoon Ketsana, which caused such horrific damages in the Philippines, has now hit Vietnam. It is officially the worst typhoon that some areas of Vietnam has seen in decades. As it slammed through the small island nation of the Philippines, we in Vietnam braced for what we knew would soon hit our coastlines.

 

INDONESIA Tsunami five years later

It was high noon in Banda Aceh, a city that was devastated by the great tsunami in late 2004. The capital of the northernmost province on Sumatra and in Indonesia sounds rather quiet. For the past five years, it has struggled to re-emerge. Today, rows of new buildings are seen in every corner: offices, stores, houses, and schools. All were painted in modern colors. A sign of the city’s rebirth.

 

GEORGIA One year after the conflict

One year has passed since the conflict sparked between Georgia and Russia. Running from their homes on both sides of the fighting, over 130,000 people ended up in the homes of relatives, in music schools, fire stations, abandoned hospitals, factories and tents. Although the conflict lasted just seven days, hundreds of thousands of people remain affected psychologically, socially and economically.

 

BANGLADESH Nurjahans struggle for survival

Cyclone Aila struck southern Bangladesh on 25 May, devastating thousands of households and increasing the vulnerability of people living in the char (islands built up from silt in a river) regions of Bangladesh. A large number of homes are now underwater. The chars are remote and disconnected from all modern facilities as it is, and now the cyclone has added to the misery of the people