In response to flooding in the Chaco and the declared natural disaster, and in coordination with the National Emergency Secretariat (SEN), USAID/OFDA is providing a $50,000 grant to support affected families.

The grant is provided to the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) for the purchase, transport and distribution of non-food and household items, including mattresses and mosquito nets, to the most severely affected communities by the severe flooding in Paraguay’s Chaco Region, including an estimated total of 650 families.  The public health risk for outbreaks such as cholera, typhoid and dengue fever is high. With a recent reduction of rain, river levels have started dropping and standing water is evaporating steadily, but of course roads and infrastructure are impassable. As emergency services gradually withdrawn and families return to their communities, they found their houses in need of substantial repair and those made of adobe are irreparable. ADRA will set up a headquarters at a camp located at 60 km from Tte. Irala Fernandez to implement the distribution to the proposed communities: Sombrero Piri Río Verde, Nueva Promesa, Anaconda and Nanawa.  OFDA consultant Phil Gelman and Mission Disaster Relief Officer Steve Hendrix are coordinating the program with ADRA, SEN and the Mayor of Manuel Irala Fernandez, Ramon Zavala.

May 23, 2012