Dominican Republic (MNN) — As the world watches Isaac beatson the southern coast of the United States, the storm has already affected the island of Hispaniola, home to Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
The storm hit the DR on August 24, dropping 12 inches of rain on the region.
Food for the Hungry program director Cristopher Garrido says, "We had a lot of the rural communities cut off from the outside world, rivers rising, bridges being washed away. After the storm passed and the flooding continues, we've had thousands of families displaced from their homes. Many have lost everything they own. Many are still trying to find a safe place to be until the waters recede once again."
Many friends and family members have taken in the homeless. Garrido says this isn't easy in most cases. "In areas that have abject poverty to begin with, this is a serious issue. This is worsened by the fact that with the flooding come mosquitoes and dengue fever, and also water sources being contaminated. We have things like cholera outbreaks."
According to Garrido, FH programs in urban areas were hit hard. "We've had at least 150 families displaced so far. And in the rural areas, agricultural areas, agriculture has been severely affected, and a lot of the crops were completely lost."
FH works through the local churches in the region, which Garrido says is key to their work. "FH does everything based on Christian principles, seeking to take advantage of these opportunities to present God's plan and to present God's intentions in all of this. So this will definitely bring glory to God and make Him known to others."
Funding is needed to help the FH emergency response unit. You can support their work at http://www.FH.org as the organization is providing medicine for diarrhea and other heath concerns, mosquito nets, and chlorine for disinfecting water. All of this is being done to share Christ.
