March 10, 2010
CONCEPCION, Chile – Southern Baptist disaster relief specialists are on the ground in Chile, partnering with Chilean Baptists to address critical needs in two areas hit hard by the 8.8-magnitude earthquake that struck the country Feb. 27.
A six-member team from the South Carolina Baptist Convention landed in Santiago March 9 and a second team plans to arrive March 15, said Cliff Satterwhite, director of disaster relief for the convention. Two teams from the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention are scheduled to arrive March 12. The teams, which specialize in mass feeding operations, expect to be operational by week’s end.
Once fully operational, the kitchens will be able to produce as many as 1,000 meals each day.
The South Carolina team began by purchasing equipment for two kitchens, using money provided by Southern Baptist hunger and relief funds, said Charles Clark, a strategist for the Southern Baptist International Mission Board. The South Carolina and Texas feeding teams will train Chilean Baptist partners to run the kitchens and distribute meals themselves. The approach reflects an overall strategy of assisting Chilean Baptists as they develop and fine tune their own disaster response mechanisms.
South Carolina also is preparing to send a planeload of medical equipment, Sanders said. Five of the 13 hospitals in the quake region were destroyed and are in dire need of medical equipment and medication. The equipment, which is being donated by Southeastern Medical Supply, will be transported into Chile with the country’s military providing logistical support.
The relief effort in Chile is shaping up as an excellent example of Baptist cooperation, said Jeff Palmer, executive director of Baptist Global Response.
“It has been wonderful to see Southern Baptists cooperating on all levels. The state disaster relief teams from Texas and South Carolina have provided solid expertise in disaster relief. The in-country partners with the International Mission Board provided great leadership,” Palmer said. “But one of the best things was to see the partnership with Chilean Baptists, who will be there responding and ministering long after the outsiders are gone.”
The initial civil disturbances, like looting and violence, that broke out in the aftermath of the earthquake have been brought under control by the Chilean military and police, according to news services. An estimated 2 million people have been affected by the earthquake and the subsequent tsunami that struck coastal villages. Between 500,000 and 1.5 million houses were destroyed and access to food, water and electricity remain critical needs.
The death toll from the disaster, however, has been reduced to 528, according to the reliefweb.int website. Apparently, the number of displaced people mistakenly was included in the death toll figure at one point. In the Maule Region, the death toll has been lowered from 587 to 316.
A disaster relief command team will be set up at the military headquarters that is coordinating relief operations in the region, Clark added.
“While at the military base, we had the opportunity to meet with several of the mayors of the most affected communities of the Maule region,” Clark said. “We also had the opportunity to meet with the president and the general secretary of the association of municipalities of the Maule region. These contacts are very important in assessing the needs and the most effective manner in which we can meet the needs going forward. In addition to addressing broader needs across the Maule region, we are proceeding ahead with a strategy for adopting a number of the smaller townships in cooperation with local governments and Baptist churches in Talca.
“As an example of the model we want to follow, the mayor's office in one township will allow us to put a person in their office to support their recovery efforts and open doors for ministry in that community,” Clark said. “We hope to reproduce this model in several townships.”
In addition to setting up the kitchen units, an initial disbursement of $150,000 has been used to purchase water, first-aid supplies and other relief materials for distribution as the assessment team made its way through the quake zone, Clark said.
Another immediate need is emergency shelter, Clark said.
“While some tents and tarps will be used for shelter, another option is a temporary pine-sided, tin-roofed, slatted-floor house that can be put together in a couple of hours,” Clark said. “The materials, labor and know-how are readily available locally. The cost is about $500 to $600 each to construct.”
The assessment team is evaluating the possibility of providing 500 to 600 of the shelters, using $300,000 in disaster relief funds, Clark noted.
The teams from Texas and South Carolina – which were the two states on call with Baptist Global Response for disaster response – responded very quickly with both assessment team members and volunteers, said Jim Brown, director of BGR’s U.S. office.
“The assessment team was well prepared to meet the challenges that were before them and did an excellent job – especially in connecting all partners, national and international,” Brown said. “Later this week, additional specialized teams will be recruited to help with the emergency sheltering projects.”
Partnership with Chilean Baptist representatives has been crucial to assessing the need and launching the joint relief effort, Clark added.
“We have been traveling with three representatives of the Chile Baptist Convention, who have been instrumental in our contacts with local Baptist churches,” Clark said. “They are working on a number of different relief fronts, including food and basic needs distribution. El Sembrador Baptist Church of Talca has been generous to let us use their sanctuary as a dormitory, dining room and headquarters.”