A shaken planet

What to do during an earthquake? Test your knowledge!

http://www.nwcn.com/sharedcontent/features/flash/quake/during.html

A report on the internet says...

Cyclone Nargis ripped through the river delta city of Yangon, Myanmar for more than 10 hours -- from Friday night until Saturday noon, according to CNN.

Earlier this week, The Christian Post reported that the U.S. State Department said Myanmar's government had not granted permission for a Disaster Assistance Response Team into the country.

In the past, according to British relief association Christian Aid, the government of Myanmar has been reluctant to allow international assistance into the country at times of disaster. But now, in a reflection of the scale of the disaster, the government has called for international assistance, which has allowed Christian relief organizations to get involved.

As the death toll has risen to over 22,000 according to the latest estimates reported by CNN.com, President Bush and other world leaders are urging Myanmar's reclusive military government to better enable the flow of aid.

Response of Christian Agencies
Samaritan's Purse is reporting that in addition to the rising death toll, some 41,000 people are missing. Many more are homeless, thanks to a 12-foot storm surge that swept away entire towns and villages.

Thankfully, Samaritan’s Purse has a team of water specialists who were in Myanmar when the storm hit. Other Samaritan’s Purse emergency teams in Southeast Asia are mobilizing to respond to needs for food, water, and emergency shelter.

World Vision is estimating that overall, 2 million people have been or will be affected by Nargis's devastation, therefore shelter and water are the most urgent needs as World Vision launches a "full-scale" response. They are asking for $3 million in global donations to provide that aid to children and families.

"News is only slowly trickling out of the country, but it is clear from the information already available that this is a major catastrophe demanding an urgent response," says Dean Hirsch, president of World Vision International. "My greatest concern is for the children of Myanmar who will be especially vulnerable at this time. We must get them shelter, clean water, and food as quickly as possible. The threat of the spread of disease is always at the door when people are living in such conditions and children are the most likely to succumb to illness."

The government of Myanmar has invited World Vision to provide assistance in the form of zinc sheets, tents, tarpaulins, and medicine. World Visision is also coordinating with authorities to explore an airlift of emergency supplies into the country from one of its global warehouses.
Christian Aid is responding to the devastation as well, already having committed £50,000 for local partners to carry out relief work. Ever since the Cyclone first hit on May 3, Christian Aid staff have been attempting to contact partners in Burma, but finding lines of communication has been difficult with power and telephone systems down. Christian Aid also points to Myanmar's lack of an early warning system as a concern that needs to be remedied for the future.

I found this message from a Christian who works 50 km from the epicentre. He and his family were fortunate survivors and have since been evacuated.

Please pray for China

• Pray for those children orphaned, for parents who’ve lost their only child
• Pray for those who are injured to receive appropriate medical care
• Pray for the government to be able to restore vital services (food supply, water, roadways, etc)
• For the church to use this opportunity to minister to people’s needs and love people into the Kingdom
• For aid and aid workers to quickly get to those who most need it
• There have been many more earthquakes of magnitude 4.4 or greater (aftershocks). Each one can cause further damage as rubble shifts and damaged buildings collapse.
• Pray for stability and the rain to stop.
• Praise God for the government’s rapid response and willingness to receive foreign aid
• Praise God that the most affected areas are not major metropolitan areas

World Vision, which has a community development centre just 200 kilometres from the earthquake’s epicentre, was just one of the many Christian organisations that said that it had relief and aid workers ready to deploy at any notice.

The Amity Foundation, the only member of Action by Churches Together International, working extensively in China, sent staff to the affected areas to assess the situation and plan a response. It reports that access to the quake hit areas has been made very difficult by the destruction of communications and transport links.

Franklin Graham, who is currently travelling through China on a goodwill tour in support of the country’s rapidly growing Christian community, indicated that his relief organisation, Samaritan’s Purse, would be ready to send aid immediately during a meeting with Chinese officials.

Graham, whose mother was born in China, has often spoken openly of his love for the nation and its readiness to receive the Gospel. On Sunday, Graham described the country as a “great hope” after preaching powerfully of Jesus Christ to over 12,000 people at Hangzhou Chong-Yi Christian Church, the nation’s largest megachurch. Over 1,000 people in attendance responded immediately to Graham’s invitation to become followers of Jesus Christ.

Monday’s earthquake so soon after the cyclone disaster in Burma has brought to attention the readiness and dedication of Christian relief organisations.

The Chinese Government, in response, has said that it would welcome all international aid and relief.

The earthquake is said to be China’s worst since 1976, when over 200,000 people perished in the city of Tangshan after it was hit by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake.