Across Africa, CRS Brings Relief to Flood-Affected Families

Communities will feel effects of flooding for months; CRS gears up long-term response

NAIROBI, Kenya, October 5, 2007 - As flooding subsides across Africa, communities are bracing for the aftermath of months of heavy rain. Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is delivering relief supplies throughout East and West Africa, while working on long-term solutions to help families who will feel the effects of the devastating flooding long after the waters recede.

In Northern Ghana, some 350,000 people have been affected, with more than 100,000 displaced. The government has declared states of emergency across the three northern regions. Thanks to a $50,000 donation from USAID, CRS this week distributed supplies to 3,000 Ghanaians hit hardest by the floods. The funding provided lanterns, blankets, sleeping mats and, in some regions, insecticide-treated mosquito nets. CRS also contributed $20,000 of its private resources to buy 500 bags of corn for those affected. These materials will help vulnerable Ghanaians cope with immediate needs.

In coming weeks, CRS will also support shelter rehabilitation in Ghana's Upper East region. CRS staff are consulting with area residents on the development and design of the transitional shelters, and will promote use of locally available materials when possible.

"The biggest problem is housing," said Aiden Naa Sabie, a CRS program officer, who said many area homes cracked under the intense rain. "People have said it's a miracle they aren't buried because most houses collapsed at night or at dawn."

In eastern and northern Uganda, intense off-season rain that started in July has affected some 300,000 people, prompting the government to declare a state of emergency. On a recent assessment mission in the eastern Teso region, CRS staff found communities stranded by damaged roads and bridges, houses that had been filled with 6 inches of water for a month and 90 percent of crops destroyed by standing water.

"The real emergencies are the potential for an outbreak of water-borne diseases and the loss of crops that will leave families with almost no food to harvest or seeds to plant next season," says Jack Norman, country representative for CRS Uganda.

CRS will assist 2,300 families in the eastern Soroti district, using $100,000 from Caritas Australia and $50,000 of private funds. This money will provide mosquito nets, water purification tablets, and jerry cans. CRS also plans to provide hygiene and sanitation trainings and deliver de-worming medications and vaccines for livestock to prevent the loss of cattle and other animals.

In western Kenya, two months of flooding in the Budalangi division displaced 28,000 people and damaged roads, water systems, schools and health facilities. CRS Kenya is helping 1,500 recently displaced families in the Bunyala South area, providing needed mosquito nets, plastic sheeting, water purification tablets, blankets and kitchen sets at a cost of about $40,000. As in Uganda, CRS is coordinating relief efforts with other agencies, including CAFOD and local Caritas organizations.

CRS staff on the ground in Ghana, Uganda and Kenya are available for interviews. Please contact Hilary Roxe at 410-951-7408 (hroxe@crs.org) or Debbie DeVoe in Nairobi, Kenya, at +254.733.556.868 (ddevoe@crsearo.org).

How to Help:

Donate online: www.crs.org Donate via phone: 1-877-HELP-CRS Mail a check: Catholic Relief Services P.O. Box 17090 Baltimore, Maryland 21203-7090

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Catholic Relief Services is the international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic community. The agency provides assistance to people in 100 countries and territories based on need, regardless of race, nationality or creed.