Refugee Camp in El Salvador in Dire Need
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The home stretch: Children dart among the rows of steel housing - their temporary home at the Apaneca refugee camp.
Packed into 3x3 steel shacks, the majority of families here are struggling to gain financial security
and hope for a better living situation.
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APANECA, El Salvador - In the wake of Hurricane Stan, widespread
flooding and deadly mudslides forced an estimated 50,000 Salvadoran residents to
flee their homes and evacuate to government sites, according to country reports.
Operation Blessing responded by providing emergency disaster relief such as food,
clothing, and medical services, yet many devastated regions still remain untouched.
Recently, OBI visited one such region - a refugee camp located in Apaneca - housing
over 100 displaced families.
“These individuals continue to live in a shanty town in miserable conditions,”
said Rich Danzeisen, International Director for OBI.
Families pack inside 3x3 meter homes made of corrugated steel sheeting,
with no running water and only 40 available toilets for the entire community. In
addition, the water supply that is available is non-potable, the black and grey water
draining into open ditches that run alongside the rows of shacks.
“They are currently receiving no assistance from any other NGO outside of OBI or
from the government,” Danzeisen said. “The camp was appreciative of our support, but
it was obvious they were desperate for some sort of long-term solution.”
Because the government is not allowing families to return to unstable mountainside
villages, appointed leaders in the refugee camp say they are desperate to find property
so that they can begin to rebuild.
“It’s hard to build homes on air,” said one leader.
OBI is currently working on a strategy to continue meeting the needs for these and
other families in El Salvador who are fighting to recover from the devastation. In
addition to El Salvador, OBI has also been actively responding to hurricane-related needs
in Guatemala and Mexico.
In Chiapas, Mexico, and other villages bordering the Pacific Coast, OBI has reached
over 5,000 victims through medical clinics, food distribution and cleaning polluted wells,
allowing villagers access to clean, potable water.
How You Can Help
Many families in Mexico and Central America are still in need of assistance following
the destruction caused by Hurricane Stan. Forced to abandon their homes, many are without
the resources needed to start over. You can help families like these turn a corner by supporting
Operation Blessing’s ongoing hurricane relief efforts through
online donations. Thank you for choosing to partner with us and help break the cycle of suffering!
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