LAHORE (UCAN): Catholic and Protestant Churches have set up flood relief camps as record monsoon rains and melting glaciers in the northern mountains brought floods that affected 33 million people and killed at least 1,300, including 453 children.
Catholic sisters in Lahore are running a fundraising camp outside St. Mary’s Church where students help collect donations, grocery items and clothes.
Franciscan Sister of the Heart of Jesus Rabail Shakeel led six students of St. Francis Convent High School to run the camp on September 5. “The nuns take the evening shift for two hours till 7.30pm. The morning shift is assigned for different schools. Announcements were also made last week in Church-run schools for donations. All items will be handed over to the parish priest on September 11,” she said.
“There is now a high risk of water-borne, deadly diseases spreading rapidly, diarrhea, cholera, dengue, malaria. There is, therefore, a risk of many more child deaths,” UNICEF Pakistan representative, Abdullah Fadil, told a Geneva press briefing.
At Liberty roundabout in Lahore, Reverend Amjad Niamat, chairperson of the Ecumenism and Interfaith Harmony Commission of Presbyterian Church of Pakistan, offers drinking water packs, juice cartons and other food items alongside biblical literature at his camp for the flood affected.
“You can see the unease in the eyes of people who see biblical literature. Those who inquire are welcome to read these books for peace of mind as well as awareness of diseases. A few students took them for research. The camp has opened a new door for evangelism,” Pastor Niamat said.
“We are getting phone calls for help from Hindu peasants in rural areas of Sindh province. The items will be taken to nomadic tribes next month,” he said.
Pakistan is on a list of 10 countries in the world most vulnerable to climate change and ranks 14 among the 17 “extremely high water risk” countries, according to a study released this year by the government-manged Pakistan Institute of Development Economics.
