Disaster Relief

CWR Responds to Disasters

Post a Comment » Written on May 17th, 2013     
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Burma Disaster Relief Bob Shim 12.21.12 (3)

Covenant medical missionary responds in Burma

Natural and human-caused disasters occur daily throughout the world. CWR responds when there are partners in the local area who have the capacity to respond. Recently, CWR has responded to the following disasters:

  • flooding in Mozambique and South Sudan
  • drought in India
  • violence in DR Congo, Syria, and Burma (a Covenant medical missionary participated in the response in Burma)
  • ongoing Hurricane Sandy relief, and
  • relief and recovery work which continues in Japan more than two years after the earthquake and tsunami.

Thanks to all who give faithfully so that CWR is able to respond immediately to disasters.



Drought Response in India

Post a Comment » Written on April 12th, 2013     
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India droughtMaharashtra, the second most populous state in India, is in the midst of a terrible drought situation. This drought is by far the most severe drought the state has seen in a very long time; in fact, it is even worse than the devastating drought of 1972. More than 6,000 villages have been affected, which has forced many villages to migrate to cities to find jobs. Many villagers claim that the last time their taps had water was over five years ago. Most of the state’s primary crops have already been destroyed by the conditions, and officials speculate that conditions will only continue to worsen.

Because of the severity of the water shortage, people are forced to be entirely dependent on the water tanks provided by the government. However, because of the huge populations of these villages, the water tanks do not provide even close to enough water to go around. Farmers have no idea how long it will be before they can begin cultivating crops again, and all are worried about the health effects of insufficient food. Migration has become the only option left for the villagers. Continue Reading »



Hurricane Sandy Response with Merge Ministries

Post a Comment » Written on April 10th, 2013     
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Merge Ministries is partnering with CWR as we continue responding to Hurricane Sandy on the East Coast. Below are a number of photos of a recent trip to New York.

If you are interested in working with our partners on the East Coast, please contact us. You can also support ongoing relief work by clicking here.



Mozambique Flood Response

Post a Comment » Written on March 25th, 2013     
Filed under: Disaster Relief

In partnership with World Relief, CWR is responding to a devastating flood that hit in southern Mozambique at the end of January. Following heavy rainfall that caused river levels to quickly rise by an estimated 10-18 feet, a massive flood surge down the Limpopo River hit high levels and engulfed the town of Chokwe, where thousands of homes were destroyed. Three makeshift displacement camps were formed to provide access to shelter, latrines, food and water, but they are unable to accommodate the great need. An estimated 500,000 have been affected by the flooding.

The worst impact is felt by those in villages along the river where food security and crops were completely destroyed. Losing the crop before the harvest results in hunger and economic and food insecurity in these communities.

Our response to this devastation has two primary objectives:

  1. To provide assistance to vulnerable families by providing teams of people, clean-up kits and other non-food items to assist flood victims in cleaning, rehabilitating and rebuilding homes.
  2. To provide quality seeds and other farm-rehabilitation assistance to families whose fields were damaged or destroyed during the floods. This long-term approach to rehabilitation is our primary focus. 

Please pray for those affected by this flood, as it will likely be a long time before life returns to normal for them, especially the farmers. Also, consider giving to our Disaster Relief Fund, which allows us to respond quickly to disasters like this.



Japan: Two Years Later

2 comments Written on March 11th, 2013     
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Today, March 11, marks the anniversary of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan two years ago. Covenant World Relief is still working with partners in Japan, providing ongoing relief and development to victims of the disasters. Your ongoing gifts for Japan are providing for the long-term care and work to continue.

Much has been done in the past two years! Below is an update from one of our partners about the progress that has been made:

Matsui-san, who worked closely with the United Project and 3.11 Network in Miyako City, has returned to Hokkaido in December 2012. I was kindly invited to visit her house in Sapporo City leading to my first trip to Hokkaido as part of my winter vacation.

The journey was 444 kilometers, including a 2-hour car trip, an overnight trip on a ferry, and another car trip after that. Although I could imagine the long distances in my head, actually travelling this journey made me feel all the sacrifice and hard work that many volunteers has chosen to do over almost two years of United Project’s stay in Iwate.

Even now, many volunteers come to Miyako City to serve weekly. Thanks to the constant support of these volunteers, we are able to continue to deepen our relationship with the local community. Despite this current situation, I am forced to think of how long we can continue United Project’s work in Iwate. It has now been almost two years since the earthquake and tsunami that struck Iwate. The reconstruction of the city has been proceeding quickly, and looking around the city it is difficult to spot any physical trace of this disaster. Continue Reading »



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