Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association relief news update from Brazil.

In the worst disaster of its kind in the country, storms, floods and landslides endured in January wreaked havoc in the state of Rio de Janeiro, claiming about 870 lives, with some 400 more initially missing. As the Brazilian government pledged to build 8,000 homes for the vulnerable displaced, many among the nearly 21,000 people affected remained isolated due to the landslides that left roads blocked weeks after the storms and thus were still in need of aid.

On January 13, Supreme Master Ching Hai had conveyed her sorrowful prayers and sympathies as she donated US$15,000 and asked that our nearby Association members please go and render aid to the most desperate. Combined with an approximate US$4,700 contribution from our Association members, the total US$19,700 donation could purchase US$89,600 in urgent necessities obtained in the United States, based on Brazil’s cost of living.

Covering their own travel expenses of about US$1,600, our Association’s relief teams from Brazil and Paraguay went to the city of Nova Friburgo in Rio de Janeiro state, devastated with the highest death toll of at least 418. The joint relief team arrived on January 20, and was guided by the city’s Department of Social Services to an impoverished area stricken by dozens of fatalities that was still in need of basic supplies. Thankfully, the local and federal governments as well as supporting neighboring towns had already been helping some of the Nova Friburgo victims. By the next day, the relief team delivered 400 packages of rice, flour, oil, sugar and detergent totaling 4,600 kilograms, along with SOS flyers about the veg solution to halting climate change. The relief recipients expressed their touched gratefulness to Supreme Master Ching Hai for her loving support at this time.

Our earnest appreciation for the help of the Department of Social Services and other officials as we also thank Supreme Master Ching Hai for her unconditional aid and our Association’s relief team for their prompt and caring efforts. With our prayers for the rapid recovery of the storm victims’ day-to-day lives, may such disasters be minimized through our kinder care of the planet and all fellow inhabitants.

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2011/02/02/brazil-death-toll-heavy-rains/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters/2011/feb/02/brazil-floods-urban-planning