Flood disaster
From Andhra Pradesh we received an urgent appeal for help from AMG India, our partner organisation. Whilst television reports covered the consequences of the tsunami and earthquake in Samoa and Indonesia, a similar devastating tragedy was unfolding in the south-east Indian state. During the first October weekend, Arun Kumar Mohanty, the director of AMG, sent an urgent appeal to Dr. Deichmann. We have summarized the most important passages:
Dear Dr. Deichmann,
I greet you in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
After a dry and very hot summer, Andhra Pradesh already experienced long periods of rain in the middle of August. The rain came down in such quantities that the villages were soon cut off from the outside world. The residents had to be evacuated from their homes and accommodated in emergency shelters.
Fort the past days it has once again been raining continuously – in particular in the coastal regions of Guntur, where the AMG Centre in Chilakaluripet is located. The district of Krishna, the provincial capital Hyderabad and the south of the Federal State are also affected and many villages have been completely devastated.
These masses of water had the strongest impact on Kurnool with its 5,000 strong population: there, about 80 % of the urban region are flooded, the water has come up to the second or third floor of many buildings, people are desperately looking for helpers, they cry for help, they are in panic – these are scenes, which make us aghast. The worst affected are the elderly, the sick and the children. The Government uses motor boats and helicopters to rescue the population. In accordance with unofficial reports, hundreds of people have already lost their life. There is no drinking water, no food, no electricity – and the same applies to the other flooded regions in the Guntur ¬District.
According to experts in the region, a flood like this, which has devastated the lives of thousands of people, has not occurred since 1913. The situation was even made worse because water reservoirs and dams had to be opened because of they were in danger of bursting. 400 villages on the banks of the Krishna are still in danger of being flooded; others have already surcome. Streets and railway tracks have been destroyed and the harvest has been wiped out in large parts of the region.
The Minister President of the Federal State has asked the Armed Forces and non-governmental organisations for help; since then they have started to build emergency shelters. In a first step we, AMG India, have made available 50,000 food parcels – now we want to help another 6,000 families in the Guntur ¬District, by supplying them with parcels containing 10 kilos of rice, 2 kilos of Dhal, one litre cooking oil, soap, clothing and blankets. In order to prepare these parcels to get them to the families in need, we need about 90,000 Euros –15 Euros per family who we support.
I would ask you to regard our request with favour and to let us know whether wortundtat will be able to help us.
Yours,
Arun Kumar Mohanty,
Director of AMG India
PS: Our Indian members of staff have also spontaneously decided to donate one daily wage for the emergency relief.
wortundtat would like to help. Please give your help too. It takes 15 Euros for a parcel with clothing and food to reach a family in the area devastated by floods. Please make your donation stating the purpose “Floods India”. You can also directly donate online.