Photo via bbc.co.uk

Floods hit Honduras; ministry responds to call for help

Honduras is under a state of emergency due to unusually heavy rains that caused widespread flooding and mudslides. Over 270,000 people have been displaced in a region barely recovered from Hurricane Mitch, reports MNN.

Myles Fish with International Aid says ten years ago, they were there responding to the needs. Friends made then have asked for help once more. "We've got people on the ground there now who are helping us become more specific in what the needs are. Our first attempts will be with healthcare supplies, some food, and we're sending our water filters down because we've heard that many of the water systems have been broken." There are concerns that waterborne diseases would impact the most at-risk in the communities: the children.

Aid workers are warning that the flooding is likely to worsen the impact on the region's vulnerable communities. With damaged roads and bridges, and thousands of hectares of bean and maize crops devastated, there's the threat of isolation until repairs can be made.

This disaster has made a bad situation even worse. Millions of poor people in the region were already struggling to buy food as the price of basic staples like corn and beans rose to record levels earlier this year. Without a harvest, there are questions about how people will survive the winter without international help.

Fish explains that as they respond to these desperate needs, joint efforts like theirs are making it possible for the Gospel to reach further. "It's really our hope that whatever support and relief we provide to people will be provided in the name of Christ, and literally at the hand of members of a local Christian church. If you're on the ground there and you're a recipient, you can't help but know that what's being done by International Aid through the local church is being done in the name of Christ."

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TAGS: Honduras emergency International Aid Christian church

[10/30/2008]

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