Emergency Response

September 4, 2008

At the end of August and in early September, Hurricane Gustav passed through the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, and Cuba before reaching the state of Louisiana in the United States. At the same time, Hurricane Hanna passed north of Haiti and crossed the Turks and Caicos Islands before moving north through the Bahamas.

Gustav took the lives of more than 80 people in various Caribbean nations by triggering floods and landslides. At least 66 died in Haiti, along with seven in Jamaica and eight in the Dominican Republic. The same storm forced the evacuation of 250,000 people in western Cuba, and provoked massive damage on the Isle of Youth and the province of Pinar del Rio.

Hurricane Hanna's torrential rains were blamed for at least 90 deaths in Haiti. Many people in the city of Gonaives endured at least two nights on roof tops where some neighbourhoods were submerged in two metres of water. President Rene Preval warned of an "extraordinary catastrophe" that could rival a storm that killed more than 3,000 people in Haiti four years ago.

The even stronger Hurricane Ike is expected to follow Hanna and reach the Bahamas during the weekend of September 6–7, and Tropical Storm Josephine is also moving across the Atlantic on a westward course behind Ike.

The United Church of Canada has partners in all of the affected territories, and has pledged to work with them and ecumenical partners through Action by Churches Together (ACT) in relief and reconstruction efforts.

For pictures of the impact of the storms in Haiti, please see the BBC* website.

United Church Partners Affected

Several partners are affected and can be expected to respond to the humanitarian crises provoked by the hurricanes:

• Caribbean and North American Council on Mission
• Caribbean Conference of Churches
• Cuban Council of Churches
• Karl Lévêque Cultural Institute, Haiti
• Methodist Church of the Caribbean and the Americas (including the Haiti District)
• Presbyterian Reformed Church of Cuba
• United Church of Jamaica and the Cayman Islands

How United Church Members Can Help

• Pray: From the General Council Office, our thoughts and prayers go out to our sisters and brothers who have been affected during the 2008 hurricane season. United Church members across Canada are urged also to pray for the people who live in affected communities.
• Donate: You may make a donation in either of two ways:
  • Support the new Emergency Response Fund of The United Church of Canada
  • Designate a gift for "Caribbean Hurricane Relief," and funds collected will be shared directly with networks in the region. Cheques and online donations should be made payable to The United Church of Canada and marked "Caribbean Hurricane Relief." The funds will be treated as "designated gifts."

Please note: Designated gifts cannot be counted as M&S Fund credits. However, they are eligible for tax receipts. Congregational treasurers may receive and receipt individual cheques and then forward one congregational cheque to the United Church.

For further information, please contact:

• Jim Hodgson
  Caribbean/Central America Regional Program Coordinator
  Justice, Global and Ecumenical Relations Unit (JGER)
  Tel: 416-231-5931 ext. 4013
  Toll-free: 1-800-268-3781 ext. 4013
  E-mail: Jim Hodgson