Sherry Panggabean has put together a finalized report on the earthquake and subsequent aftershocks that struck off the west coast of Sumatra yesterday. It has a good map showing where the quakes happened and is a much appreciated update on how those in the region were affected.
Read the report: Final Report Earthquake 11 April 2012
A powerful earthquake, registering at 8.7 on the Richter Scale, hit Indonesia around 4pm local time (4am CST). It was located off the west coast of Simeulue Island in Aceh Province (150 km off Western coast of Aceh and about 140 km Northwest of Nias Island) and was felt as far away as India. The earthquake was followed by three powerful aftershocks and a tsunami warning issued immediately after the initial quake.
Initial worries were heightened since this same area was struck by a major earthquake and tsunami in December 2004, which led to over 170,000 deaths and major damage to the coastal regions. Thankfully, the earthquake did not trigger a major tsunami and according to Sherry Panggabean with the Center for Disaster Risk Management and Community Development Studies, which is funded by the ELCA, the warning was called off at 8pm local time.
Sherry also reported that their staff in other regions of Indonesia had reported back that there were no major injuries or structural damage. The ELCA Global Mission Director for Asia – Pacific Continental Desk Franklin Ishida has been in contact with our one missionary in the region, Megan Ross, and has shared that she is unaffected.
With the threat of a major disaster passed, this event has given us time to pause and marvel at disaster preparedness work in action. Working with other Lutheran World Federation partners the ELCA supports the Center for Disaster Risk Management and Community Development Studies (CDRM&CDS) which has as part of its mission “to facilitate community disaster management and risk preparedness”. This involves activities like people immediate evacuating to the streets following an earthquake, getting to higher ground when hearing of the warning of a possible tsunami and the offices of CDRM&CDS checking in with each other to be communication centers for their communities.
And this is exactly what happened. The community knew what to do and did it. Through disaster risk reduction and preparedness, fears were mitigated by a solid plan of action, confusion was not given sway because of proper communication channels and at the end of the day lives that may have been in danger were kept safe. A huge prayer of thanksgiving to the staff of CDRM&CDS for their work and ministry.
The following message is from the ELCA e-Advocacy list. This lists is sent out by the Advocacy office of the ELCA to inform people of the what political issues are going on and how people can get involved. This particular message is about the situation of drought in East Africa and now West Africa, how actions within the US Congress can impact the situation and how you can get involved.
Before we turn our hearts and minds to Jesus’ path to the cross and joyous resurrection this holy weekend, we can first follow Christ’s teachings by urging Congress to act on behalf of the millions in Africa living in dire insecurity and uncertainty.
Conflict, draught, and resulting food shortages have left tens of millions of people – from Sahel to Sudan to Somalia – in crisis, facing starvation and malnutrition and forced to leave their homes and relocate in refugee camps. These men, women, and children will face even greater hardship if we do not act to protect U.S. funding for the life-saving programs upon which they depend for food, clean water and secure shelter.
In the Horn of Africa
13 million people are currently living in food crisis, still suffering from the effects of last year’s drought which forced millions to leave their homes to take refuge in camps.
Meanwhile, the plight of famine has spread west, putting 15.5 million people in West Africa’s Sahel region at risk, including eight million who need emergency assistance. Over ten million already face food insecurity and an additional one million children are at risk of severe malnutrition. Chad, Burkina Faso, Mauritania and Niger are all experiencing dangerously high malnutrition levels while in Mali alone, conflict and food shortages have displaced 100,000 people. The crisis is only expected to worsen in the coming months.
Between the crises to their east and west, Sudan and South Sudan suffer while combating their own humanitarian crises. An estimated 200,000 people have been displaced or severely affected by violence in South Kordofan, an area vulnerable to Sudan’s Armed Forces’ aerial bombing, ground attacks, sexual violence, denial of humanitarian assistance, and other tactics which some have dubbed ‘weapons of mass starvation.’ An estimated 28,000 Sudanese have been forced to relocate to South Sudan’s Yida refugee camp.
Through its membership in The Lutheran World Federation, the ELCA is participating in relief efforts with Lutheran churches and partners in these emergency crises.
Yet in the midst of these dire and enduring crises, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the House Budget Committee’s fiscal year 2013 Budget Resolution last week, which cuts the International Affairs Budget by 11 percent. The cuts include the eliminating Feed the Future and cutting the U.S. Agency for International Development’s International Disaster Assistance by 40 to 60 percent. Meanwhile, the President’s fiscal year 2013 budget request proposes cuts to essential poverty-focused programs that provide refugees and displaced people with access to food, shelter, and water, including a 13.3% cut ($250
million) to the Migration and Refugee Assistance.
CLICK HERE to tell your senators and representative to maintain funding for the International Affairs Accounts that provide essential food, water, shelter, and support to the millions of refugees around the world who have been forced to make incomprehensible sacrifices.
Want to do more? Call your senators and representatives, who are at home in your district during recess, and tell them to protect the International Affairs account from the deep, disproportionate cuts made in the House of Representatives’ FY13 Budget Resolution.
A new situation report from the Lutheran World Federation give an overview of the political and humanitarian situation affecting the Sahel region of West Africa that is current being affected by drought. The country of Mali is also experience internal conflict, leading to a growing refugee situation alongside the food crisis. This report looks mainly at Mauritania, Mali and Senegal as well as the actions of the LWF in the region.
You can read the report here.
For more information on the situation please visit the ELCA Disaster Response webpage West Africa Sahel Drought Relief. Here you can also find a situation report and bulletin insert to help share the story.
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Gifts to ELCA International Disaster Response allow the church to respond globally in times of need. Donate now.
The following update is from Sherry Panggabean of the Center for Disaster Risk Management and Community Development Studies (CDRM&CDS), located in Medan, Indonesia. This program is sponsored by the Lutheran World Federation. In particular I would lift up her request for prayers on behalf of the people of Indonesia during this time of political turmoil. For possible petitions see the ELCA Worship prayer resource Violence. (pdf)
Dear all,
The Government of Indonesia plans to raise fuel prices by around 30 percent to keep the state budget healthy, as soaring global oil prices have strained the state coffers’ ability to pay for subsidies aimed at keeping fuel prices below the market price. The plan that is slated to come into effect on April 1 had caused protests across the nation this week, starting from Monday 26.3.2012.
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Written by two members of Australian Lutheran World Service on a visit to South Sudan, “Coming Home” is a collection of stories around the work of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) as it extends back many years in this newly formed country. It is not meant to be systematic or exhaustive and in this way it is actually quite an easy, and extremely interesting, read.
In these pages you will meet indiviudal South Sudanese citizens and hear their stories. What are the major issues that have affected them? How have LWF projects like boreholes and schools been received? What are the benefits of these programs? Who owns them? How have other LWF projects, like Kakuma refugee camp, played a role in the lives of these citizens of the new South Sudan?
If you find any of these questions intriguing than I would recommend give this resource a good look.
Download and read Coming home. (pdf)