3 VILLAGES COVERED IN MUDSLIDE
Monday night, three villages near our home were covered in 8-10 feet of mud by a landslide that took everything and everyone in its path. 90 bodies have been recovered and more than 300 people are still missing and presumed dead. Rescue efforts have been hampered by the downpour of heavy rains, and aid efforts have been ineffectual and inadequate so far. Disasters such as this can wreak havoc in even the best of circumstances � but the circumstances here are not good. There has been a serious lack of training provided to the now overwhelmed local officials who have assumed the task of figuring out how to react to the crisis.
The loss of life as a consequence of disasters often comes in waves. It is now urgently required that we prepare for the next devastating phase. Time is of the essence and we must act now. We are already experiencing outbreaks of cholera and other water borne diseases from the decomposing unrecovered bodies contaminating the water sources. After days of being at the site and assessing the needs, OCM feels the best way we can help on the ground is in sustainable ways. The first is to take our Healthy Village Workshops to the affected areas and surrounding villages where we will teach on proper hygiene and sanitation. Second, teaching our First Response Training and Organization of a Crisis Scene to the officials in the many villages on the mountain. And finally, we are working with several doctors in the area who are willing to volunteer their time to set up a much needed clinic in the Trading Center halfway between the landslide site and the resettlement camps. The only other clinic in the area is now buried under the mud and rubble.
There continues to be grave danger to the thousands of people who live on the mountain. Officials are warning of more landslides as the heavy rains continue. Our goal is to sensitize the villagers living in these areas as quickly as possible as to the warning signs of a landslide, how to move out of the path of a landslide, and how to search for and help injured or trapped people quickly and safely.
While we have taken cases of water and some medical equipment, we know too well how funds and even supplies are not properly utilized, and in many cases aid never reaches the intended recipients. For that reason, OCM believes in doing as much as possible with a �hands on� approach with full accountability.
If you have a heart to help prepare the villagers to live safely and healthy, or to help establish the clinic by sending funds, please donate today. As always, 100% of your contributions go directly into programs that assist the people of Uganda.
"No one could make a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could only do a little." Edmund Burke Make a difference.
With love from Uganda,
Mike and Deb
