wfn.org | ELCA Assesses Damage, Organizes Recovery After Hurricane Ivan

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ELCA NEWS SERVICE

September 17, 2004

ELCA Assesses Damage, Organizes Recovery After Hurricane Ivan
04-173-MR

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
continues to assess damage and participate in relief efforts after
Hurricane Ivan struck the central Gulf coast of the United States Sept.
16.
     "Hurricane Ivan is churning up the southeast after crashing ashore,"
said Heather L. Feltman, director of Lutheran Disaster Response and ELCA
Domestic Disaster Response.  Lutheran Disaster Response is a ministry of
the ELCA and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.
     The "death toll caused by Ivan on the U.S. mainland continues to
increase as search and rescue teams assess the devastated areas.  Ivan
spawned many tornadoes as it came on shore and inundated many with more
rain," Feltman said.
     Lutheran Disaster Response and ELCA Domestic Disaster Response are
receiving "preliminary reports from the ELCA community and the community
at large impacted by Ivan.  A section of the Interstate 10 bridge in the
panhandle of Florida collapsed.  We have been notified that some ELCA
churches are sitting in three feet of water.  To date, ELCA pastors and
their families have suffered no loss of life," she said.
     Feltman reported that hurricanes have hit the agricultural sector of
Florida's economy significantly.  "Small citrus growers are out of
business, and farm workers have lost their jobs.  In central southwest
Florida, an estimated 20 percent of the entire state's 800,000 acres of
citrus crop has been lost.  Regeneration of citrus trees takes several
years.	This will mean long-term hardship for many who work in this
industry," she said.
     Nearly three-quarters of the farm industry workers in Florida are
"migrant" or undocumented people from the Caribbean, Mexico and South
America, Feltman said.	"Affected coastal and inland portions of
Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi are also home to many culturally
diverse residents.  Many of these communities are often poor and isolated
with limited resources for recovery," she said.
     Lutheran Disaster Response and Domestic Disaster Response continue to
remain involved in "all levels of the recovery response," Feltman said.
Both plan to continue damage assessment and coordinate with other disaster
relief organizations; assist people with Federal Emergency Management
Agency paperwork and other issues as requested; provide spiritual care and
mental health counselors; assist with unmet needs; and establish case
management through Lutheran Disaster Response's affiliate agencies.
     In a Sept. 17 letter to Lutherans living in hurricane-affected
regions of the United States and Caribbean, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson,
presiding bishop of the ELCA, wrote, "Know that you are in the thoughts
and prayers of your brothers and sisters in Christ throughout the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.  You do not face the fear, the
uncertainty and the devastation alone.	We are with you ... and in our
gifts to the Lutheran Disaster Response."

ELCA Metropolitan Chicago Synod Contributes
     To support post-hurricane recovery efforts in the Bahamas and
Florida, the synod council of the ELCA Metropolitan Chicago Synod voted
Sept. 11 to give $10,000 from its reserves to Lutheran Disaster Response.
The Metropolitan Chicago Synod and the ELCA Florida-Bahamas Synod are
"partner synods" under a "companion synod" program of the church.
     "The council decided to give the gift out of its own reserves because
we wanted to extend our support to [members of] the Florida-Bahamas
Synod," said Nanette Dahlke, vice president, ELCA Metropolitan Chicago
Synod.	"Being a partner means sharing in both joys and sorrows.  We
wanted a way to say to the people of the Florida-Bahamas that we are
concerned about them."
     According to the Rev. Paul R. Landahl, bishop of the ELCA
Metropolitan Chicago Synod, the gift is a way of making the synod
partnership more than just words.  "Especially at this time, our hearts
and prayers go out to those who suffered such devastation," Landahl said.
     In addition to the $10,000 contribution, congregations of the ELCA
Metropolitan Chicago Synod may contribute to the Lutheran Disaster
Response Florida-Bahamas Hurricane Relief, and the synod will match 20
percent -- as much as $5,000 -- of all contributions up to $25,000.
     Besides having a synodical relationship, said Dahlke, the challenge
and matching funds give local congregations an opportunity to express
their concern and support as well.

Lutherans Active in Grenada and Jamaica Following Hurricane Ivan
     In Grenada the death toll has risen to 39 people, and the destruction
to land and property is appalling, said the Rev. Y. Franklin Ishida,
director for leadership development and mission personnel recruitment,
ELCA Division for Global Mission.
     About 90 percent of homes in Grenada have been damaged or destroyed,
with many having their roofs ripped off.  Electricity and telephone
services are cut and shortages of food and drinking water have been
reported, Ishida said.
     In Jamaica 19 people have died, and there is large-scale damage to
homes and infrastructure, Ishida reported.  Many buildings had their roofs
ripped off and have sustained flood damage.  The most affected areas are
rural areas in the western part of the island.
     No casualties were reported in Cuba, due to the evacuation plan set
up by the government.  "Cuba has been pointed out as a model in hurricane
risk management in developing countries by the United Nations," Ishida
said.
     The worst-affected areas in Cuba were Pinar del Rio and Isla de la
Juventud, an area historically connected with the Lutheran church, in the
eastern part of the island, he said.  They are also the same areas that
were heavily affected by Hurricane Michelle in 2001, and Hurricanes
Isidore and Lily in 2002.
     Last month, Cuba suffered an estimated $1 billion in damages from
Hurricane Charley that hit the Havana province, Ishida said.
     In addition to Cuba, Grenada and Jamaica, Hurricane Ivan struck
Barbados, the Cayman Islands, Dominican Republic, Grenadines, Haiti, Saint
Lucia, Saint Vincent, Trinidad, Tobago and Venezuela.
     Action by Churches Together (ACT) continues to assess the situation
in the Caribbean.  ACT is a worldwide network of churches and related
agencies that meets human need through organized emergency response.  It
is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and Lutheran World
Federation (LWF), both based in Geneva, Switzerland.  The ELCA is a member
of WCC and LWF.
     The Caribbean Council of Churches, a member of ACT, is appealing for
immediate contributions in response to the damage and destruction left
behind by Hurricane Ivan.  The council is waiting to make contacts with
members in Grenada and Jamaica to start assessments, Ishida said.
_ _ _

     The text of Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson's Sept. 17 letter is at
http://www.elca.org/bishop/messages.html on the ELCA Web site.

DOMESTIC DISASTERS:

Editors: When listing organizations receiving funds to aid survivors of
major disasters inside the United States, Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin
Islands, please include:
ELCA Domestic Disaster Response, P.O. Box 71764, Chicago, Illinois
60694-1764
Credit card gift line: 1-800-638-3522
Credit card gifts via Internet: http://www.elca.org/disaster

INTERNATIONAL DISASTERS:
Editors: When listing organizations receiving funds for aid to survivors
of major disasters outside the United States, Puerto Rico or the U.S.
Virgin Islands, please include:
ELCA International Disaster Response PO Box 71764 Chicago, IL 60694-1764,
1-800-638-3522, or at
http://www.elca.org/scriptlib/dcm/giving/idisaster.asp on the Internet.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news