Back in June we were able to respond to the emergency which hit DR Congo in the shape of a volcanic eruption which devastated the city of Goma and surrounding areas and displaced many people from their homes and many lives were lost. We donated £5,000 to help with the emergency response being provided by Comfort International and others.
Below is an update on the situation in DRC from Callum Henderson of Comfort International:
“I thought you might like a bit of an update on the situation in DRC and we would want to extend our thanks again for your generous gift for the DRC Emergency appeal.
It’s been a fast moving situation and very busy for our partners. They have however been able to send pictures as they have provided emergency supplies.
They were able to start emergency food and water distribution immediately and that meant by Wednesday 2nd June over 1000 people had been supported in that way with hundreds more throughout the following days. Further distributions have continued through June with an emphasis on the supply of medicines, especially to deal with illness related to the pollution of the water supply from the volcanic material. Food, water and medicine have been distributed to the local population at Kyezye health post, displaced families from the schools at Kisima, Kambize, Walugaba, Salugaba and St Jean, the Children of Libertry ex-child soldiers, members of the rape survivors support group who had fled the volcano, 85 members of rape survivors families, mothers and babies through the Comfort Babies congo project, and other needy people who had fled to Sake.
For some people the ramifications will be long term, especially for people like the teachers whose homes were caught in the lava flow - thankfully they survived but their homes were utterly destroyed. However, we think, due to the very encouraging nature of the response to the emergency we may also be able to help with some support for that. For others, there is some hope that people will be able to get back home in the not too distant future. There are still concerns over the possible re-eruption of Nyiragongo but the vulcanologists appear to feel that the extreme danger is passing and if that scenario continues people should be back home soon. It's been an incredibly difficult time for people fleeing with very little in the way of belongings and the support has not only helped them eat and drink but assured them they were not forgotten. So bless you so much for your help with this.”
