ADRA New Zealand

dayan-eager-samoa-disaster-adra

ADRA continues to respond in Samoa, following the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit Wednesday morning.

ADRA offices in the Pacific are coordinating a response with local partners, and have deployed Mr. Dayan Eager, International Programmes Director for ADRA New Zealand, to Samoa to provide emergency management support to the response efforts. Mr. Eager has been able to visit some coastal areas to see first-hand the effects of the tsunami on several villages. He has met survivors and heard about their experiences.

“We travelled to the southernmost part of the island and visited several villages. We listened to personal accounts of the disaster. It’s a very terrible situation,” he said.

Survivors told Mr. Eager of the impact and strength of the waves as they crashed over the coastline, including the upturning of cars and whole trees being uprooted. “This must have been a very scary experience,” he said.

Mr. Eager reported that many of the people are still waiting in the mountains, too fearful to return to the coast. Some have ventured to the coast to sort through the debris that litters the beach and surrounding areas.

In addition to the necessary assessments of affected areas, ADRA personnel met with the Samoan Disaster Management Council and other responding agencies to compile findings and plan a coordinated response. The Samoan Government confirmed at that time that 123 people had died, including seven foreigners, 310 people had been injured and 16 people were still missing. Several non-government organisations (NGOs), such as ADRA, Red Cross, Oxfam, and Caritas, reported their findings from their assessments of communities and all are working to support the Samoan people as they recover from this terrible disaster.

ADRA is continuing to work with local communities, organisations and partners, including the Adventist Church, to provide a response in the country and is committed to the long-term needs of the people. More reports will be provided as they become available.

ADRA NZ is still in need of funding to help efforts of supplying much needed emergency supplies. To donate click here or donate via our call centre 0800 4 999 111