Many of you have been asking about Bedline Bazile, our Compassion child, who lives in Haiti. I have contacted Compassion for details of how Hurricane Matthew has affected the area where she lives and have received this response:
‘As Florida in the US prepares for Hurricane Matthew to make landfall, a more detailed picture is emerging of the destruction left in Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Colombia.
In Haiti, the death toll is now estimated to be more than 300. 50 people were reported killed in the town of Roche-a-Bateau alone. Rescue workers in Haiti are still struggling to reach affected parts of Haiti as the bridge connecting to the south was washed away by flood waters.
We still have very limited information about the number of Compassion-assisted children and families who have been impacted. Compassion Colombia confirms that 1,000 sponsored children have been impacted by the hurricane. The majority have lost homes and household items. Our colleagues in the Compassion Haiti office sent through the following prayer request yesterday:
“Hurricane Matthew has devastated our country, particularly the south region. It has made thousands of victims and many people become homeless. The government has already intervened in some areas to bring support to concerned people, yet some other affected places are not called on and they are in need. Please pray that God brings them comfort in such a tragedy.”
Please join us in continuing to pray for all those affected by Hurricane Matthew. Pray particularly for the children in these three nations who have lost homes and loved ones.
At the moment we do not have any information about Bedline, however be assured that if we do hear we will contact you as soon as possible. If you do not hear from us with specific information about Bedline, please know that she is OK.’
Compassion have set up a relief disaster fund to help those in Haiti. Further details about that are available here.