Red Cross deploys disaster response teams in Madagascar for Tropical Cyclone Ava

GENEVA, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) said Thursday that disaster response teams are readying response plans in anticipation of the landfall of Tropical Cyclone Ava.

The IFRC said in a statement that in the event of a disaster, the Red Cross will be able to immediately draw on pre-positioned emergency supplies for 500 families, and plans are under way to top up these stocks with additional relief supplies.

The Geneva-based IFRC quoted Izaka Harizaka, acting Secretary General, Malagasy Red Cross as saying, "Right now, our major concern is flooding as a result of the expected heavy rains.

"We've activated our national disaster response team, and Red Cross volunteers in all the districts are on high alert," he said.

Madagascar is regularly hit by cyclones, said the IFRC.

In March 2017, Tropical Cyclone Enawo hit the island and claimed dozen of lives, displacing tens of thousands of people.

It was the strongest storm to hit the island nation in more than a decade.

In response, the Malagasy Red Cross mobilized 24 disaster response teams alongside nearly 900 volunteers, said the IFRC. Enditem