Preparedness pays off in the Dominican Republic

In La Bombita, Hurricane Noel swept away almost everything, explains 43-year-old Simona. Water came up three to four feet, and mud was two feet deep. Simona and her family received CWS Blankets while staying at a nearby shelter. Photo: Julia Jones/CWS

Story by Chris Herlinger/CWS and Don Tatlock/CWS

"It was very fortunate and a blessing from God for us to have recently received a shipment from Church World Service," said Lorenzo Mota King, director of long-time Church World Service partner organization Servicio Social de Iglesias Dominicanas (Social Service of the Dominican Churches, SSID).

Mota King is referring to supplies that Church World Service provided to SSID this past fall, not long before Hurricane Noel pounded the Dominican Republic with heavy rain and flooded low-lying areas, including many bateyes. Bateyes are poor rural communities, comprised mainly of Haitians and Haitian-Dominicans, generally located in areas where sugar cane is raised and harvested.

Prepositioning of supplies in disaster prone areas is a key emergency preparedness strategy of CWS.

“Our regional staff were available immediately to take care of affected communities, and made an important needs assessment of the damages caused to the families, as well as to their houses, parcels of land and animals,” said Mota King.

In the Dominican Republic, Noel left more than 80 people dead, completely destroyed more than 700 homes, and damaged 16,000 more.

The well-established bateye of La Bombita was clearly hurting when an SSID-CWS team arrived in Noel’s wake. Families were returning to their damaged homes from nearby shelters, having lost furnishings, household goods, and most of their crops. In front of many homes were mattresses: People were trying to dry them out during the day because they had nothing else to use for sleeping.

In La Bombita and other severely affected communities in the west and southwest, Church World Service and partners provided water, food including canned meat, medical care, CWS Hygiene Kits and School Kits, and lightweight, water-resistant CWS Blankets – as well as other supplies from local Dominican churches and individuals.

With Church World Service assistance, SSID continues to respond to the effects of Hurricane Noel in La Bombita and in 24 other affected communities in three provinces. Beyond emergency aid, the goal is long-term rehabilitation of agriculture and housing with many of the families, explained Mota King.

SSID is helping approximately 35 families with the construction of new housing and 120 families to repair their homes. In addition, SSID is helping some 450 families revitalize their crops and their food production, with the provision of seeds, tools, and agricultural supplies. In addition, SSID is training 120 people – staff and volunteers of community organizations – in the principles of emergency preparedness.

“Residents lost many possessions, and even friends and relatives, but many now express a sense of hope for the future,” reports Julia Jones, a CWS staffer who recently visited families in two of the affected bateyes.

Also with CWS support, long-time partner Grupo de Pastores Interdenominacionales assisted some 500 families living in bateyes near Santo Domingo.

CWS is seeking additional support for recovery efforts in the Dominican Republic. The CWS Tools & Blankets Program also helps make this work possible. Many congregations plan Blanket Sundays for spring, often around Mother’s Day or Father’s Day. For more information please contact your CWS regional office toll-free at 888-297-2767. Videos and other educational materials are available.