CREATE TABLE table_78290 ("Disaster" TEXT, "Year" TEXT, "Countries Affected" TEXT, "Scale of Disaster" TEXT, "People Assisted" TEXT, "Nature of Help" TEXT)

How many people were assisted in 1997?
SELECT "People Assisted" FROM table_78290 WHERE "Year" = '1997'
SELECT "People Assisted" FROM "table_78290" WHERE "Year" = '1997'