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TechnoratiChurch-based emergency relief body has appealed over 300 thousand U.S. dollars for the rehabilitation of the victims of an earthquake in Honduras a month ago.
“Reconstruction and repair of houses and psychosocial support to help the affected population” are among the most important needs, said Action by Churches Together (ACT) International and has requested member Churches to donate generously.
On 28 May, a powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 on the Richter scale struck Honduras, a Central American nation on its Atlantic coast killing seven people, 40 injured and more than 130 buildings damaged or destroyed in northern Honduras, according to U.S. Geological Survey.
The quake was felt in much of Belize, El Salvador, and Guatemala and as far as Cancun in Mexico. In Northern Honduras, bridges and public infrastructure were damaged, including roads, water system and electricity lines. Communications were also affected.
The most affected regions are the Bahía islands (Roatán, Guanaja and Utila), the harbor towns of La Ceiba, Trujillo and Puerto Cortés and the valley of Sula. Other parts of the country were affected due to reactivation of geological faults, the government disaster response agency COPECO reported.
The following day, COPECO together with Bolsa Samaritana and supportive families have distributed immediate humanitarian assistance to the affected persons, including tents for temporary shelter and food, ACT International said.
In some locations, school was suspended as a preventive measure. The Ministry of Health is monitoring the risk of epidemiologic outbreak, in particular where water is lacking.
The ACT Forum in Honduras supported the municipal and local infrastructures CODEM and CODEL in the damage evaluation and needs assessment, which were made particularly difficult by the interruption of communication services and electricity lines.
ACT said, among the most important needs are the reconstruction and repair of houses and psychosocial support to help the affected population to resume a normal life.
ACT International has requested its members from Lutheran World Federation (LWF); LWF will be supported by ACT members, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA-Nicaragua) and Christian Aid (CAID) through the forum Coordination Committee.
Implementing ACT partners are: Organismo Cristiano de Desarrollo Integral de Honduras (OCDIH) and Comisión de Acción Social Menonita (CASM).
They plan to support 146 families in the municipalities of Puerto Cortes (Dpt of Cortes) and Chinda (Dpt of Santa Barbara) with psycho-social care and assistance for rebuilding their houses.
The ACT members are also in contact with the organization CEPUDO, a partner of the North American organization Food for the Poor. CEPUDO has had many projects focusing on the construction of houses.
On Wednesday, ACT Forum Honduras has also called upon the restoration of ousted Honduran President Jose Manuel Zelaya, who was expelled to Costa Rica by the Honduran army after he decided to go ahead with a referendum. The political stalemate remains unsolved.
Action by Churches Together (ACT) International is a global alliance of churches and related agencies working to save lives and support communities in emergencies worldwide.
The alliance members are from World Council of Churches (WCC) representing 550 million protestant and Orthodox Christians in 120 countries.
