Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Four Central American countries suffer devastating effects of storm

Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador are faced with the prospect of hundreds of dead and thousands homeless, after a relentless 10-day tropical depression flooded out bridges, roads and homes. Those killed include 32 in El Salvador, 29 in Guatemala, 13 in Honduras and eight in Nicaragua, according to local officials in a Tuesday report.

In El Salvador alone, the toll is extreme. Fr. David Blanchard, who has served as a missionary in El Salvador since the late 1980s, provided this report today to Food For The Poor:

“Twelve bridges have been destroyed, isolating much of the country from the capital, ports and airport. Six provinces are completely isolated from the rest of the country. In San Salvador, 10,000 people are now in organized shelters. Across the country, there are an additional 5,000 in shelters, although many more have sought refuge with families and neighbors. The total number of internally displaced persons is estimated at 100,000.”

Food For The Poor is rushing containers of water and hygiene supplies to help, but also needs the help of the public. There is an urgent need for canned meat, canned fish, canned milk, and canned beans. Tarps also are needed. Please take these items to Food For The Poor, 6401 Lyons Road, Coconut Creek, FL. Donations will be accepted starting Wednesday, Oct. 19, at 9 a.m. Cash donations also may be made by calling 1-800-427-9104, and referring to source code 082580.

Food For The Poor, the largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of the hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 96 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor.

For more information, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org.

Contact:
Kathy Skipper
Food For The Poor
Public Relations Director
954-427-2222 x 6614
kathys@foodforthepoor.com

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