Mozambique
(MNN) — Cyclone Favio brings a new flood threat to Mozambique. The storm left a destructive path which has so
far left nearly 25,000 people in urgent need of assistance in Madagascar.
Food For The Hungry's Warren Elliott is working near the flooded
Zambezi River. Mozambique
has already seen more than 100 000 people displaced and 40 killed by serious
flooding in the Zambezi river valley.
"The humanitarian community, here in Mozambique, thought they kind of
had it under control. But now, with the
cyclone approaching, no one is quite sure what's going to happen."
The international community need to urgently respond to our
flood operations appeal and as the situation of the affected people is rapidly
deteriorating. Even as damage estimates
are underway, it's apparent the storm strained previous relief operations.
Displaced thousands survived the earlier floods, only to
have no shelter from this new storm. FHI
is one of only a few humanitarian groups on the ground. "It was never
declared a national emergency, so it hasn't really hit the news in a big way
for the international community to get together. But, the cyclone could push it to a different
level."
Government officials warn that as many as 285,000 people
could be affected and would need food, aid and other help, while many are
already at risk from water-borne disease, malaria and hunger.
Destructive cyclones played a big role in one of the country's worst flood
disasters in 2000-2001, which killed 7 000 people and made almost half a million
homeless. Yet even during that crisis, Food For The Hungry stood firm in their
commitment to the region.
With two decades' work behind them, Elliott says their
ministry pattern has been consistent.
"Many of their programs have been ongoing for ten years in this
particular province. So, the
relationships that Food For the Hungry has with the people who are affected by
this flood, are vast. They know the
people. It's almost just another act of
demonstrating why Food For The Hungry is doing this: to spread the love of
Christ."
Says Food for the Hungry President
Benjamin K. Homan, "God calls us particularly to those places of poverty,
that are hurting and often unstable. Our calling is to go to 'rocky terrain."
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