Displaying items by tag: communities destroyed
Malawi & Mozambique: Record-breaking Cyclone Freddy
Freddy has weakened then re-intensified breaking all records and has the highest-ever accumulated energy for a single cyclone. This long-lasting cyclone refuses to dissipate, tearing through Malawi and Mozambique. 190 have died in Malawi, many more are injured and 5 are confirmed dead in Mozambique, but the extent of damage and deaths is not yet clear and expected to rise. Mudslides are hampering searches for survivors and many affected areas are cut off. The church is already responding with shelter and food for those whose homes are destroyed and giving psychosocial support to the bereaved as they bury the dead. Malawi's power supply has been crippled with most parts of the country experiencing lengthy blackouts. Cyclones are expected this time of year, but they are becoming much more intense and dangerous due to climate change. Pray for God to wrap his arms around all who are affected by this disaster.
Guatemala: volcano casualties
There are over 75 people dead, 200 still missing and 3,319 in shelters, many of them with dead or missing loved ones, unable to return to homes and land destroyed by Guatemala’s most active volcano. Firefighters said the chance of finding anyone alive was now practically non-existent. The thick grey ash covering the region has been hardened by rainfall, making it even more difficult to dig through the piles of rocks and debris. Pray for the exhausted rescue workers still searching for survivors. Pray for those who have lost loved ones. Pray for the rural communities who have lost everything - land, livestock and livelihood - in a once-fertile collection of canyons, hillsides and farms now reduced to a moonscape of ash and debris. ‘In a matter of three or four minutes the village disappeared as a sea of muck came crashing into homes, inundating people, pets and wildlife’, said one survivor.