Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) sent three National Response Teams (NRT) into North Carolina and South Carolina in the wake of severe flooding caused by Hurricane Florence. The teams deployed into the presbyteries of Coastal Carolina, New Harmony and New Hope to make initial damage assessments, meet with presbytery staff and pastors in the affected areas, and be a presence for those affected by the storm’s extreme rainfall amounts and wind damage. Flooding and loss of housing, particularly for those most vulnerable, are the biggest short-term concerns for residents of the impacted areas.
As the eyewall of Hurricane Florence passed over the Rev. Dr. Doug Cushing’s home in Leland, North Carolina, on the morning of Friday, Sept. 14, it was as if someone “had opened a firehose.”
While Hurricane Florence dominated media coverage in the U.S., the most intense storm of the year battered the Philippines, Guam, the Marshall Islands, China and Hong Kong, causing extensive damage, loss of life, landslides and severe flooding to residents. Super Typhoon Mangkhut battered the northern Philippines with wind speeds up to 175 miles per hour, more powerful than a Category 5 hurricane. Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) is working with its area partners, the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) and ACT Alliance, to assess the damage and deliver timely response actions.
A representative from a Kenya-based church organization visited the Presbyterian Mission Agency on Monday to discuss the plight facing South Sudanese refugees. The Rev. Nicta M. Lubaale, general secretary of the Organization of African Instituted Churches (OAIC), was hosted by Presbyterian Disaster Assistance.
More than 100 people are dead and hundreds more are injured or missing following a 6.9 magnitude earthquake in Indonesia. The quake struck Sunday night on the popular resort island of Lombok. Two days later, rescuers are still pulling survivors from the rubble.
Even before Hurricane Maria made landfall in September 2017, the Rev. Edwin González-Castillo and other Presbyterian leaders in Puerto Rico received promises of help from Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA).
I arrived at Ferncliff late at night, eager to hear of the camp and conference center’s new exploits but exhausted from the journey. I settled down to sleep not knowing that the comfortable mattress was my first introduction to Ferncliff’s Sharing the Goods ministry partnership with Good360.
Mientras partes de Texas continúan lidiando con las lluvias torrenciales, inundaciones y daños causados por el viento de la tormenta tropical de esta semana, el pueblo presbiteriano está haciendo donaciones a través del Programa Presbiteriano de Asistencia en Desastres (PDA) para ayudar con las necesidades de emergencia.
As parts of Texas continue to deal with heavy rain, flooding and wind damage from this week’s hurricane-turned-tropical storm, Presbyterians are making donations through Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) to help with emergency needs.
