Samaritan's Purse deploys Disaster Relief Unit to Newfoundland

Christian relief organization will work with volunteers to aid in Hurricane Igor recovery

CALGARY, Sept. 28 /CNW/ - Samaritan's Purse Canada is sending a Disaster Relief Unit to Bonavista, Newfoundland, to help local emergency officials and residents clean-up after Hurricane Igor lashed the Newfoundland coast.

The Disaster Relief Unit - a specially equipped trailer - will arrive Wednesday evening and become a volunteer coordination center in Bonavista, a town of 3,700 about 300 kilometers north of St. John's. Samaritan's Purse will work with local churches, agencies, and volunteers from the region to manage and provide clean-up and other recovery assistance to residents.

"Our first focus will be to send volunteers to those most in need - the elderly, the disabled, or those unable to clean up their homes on their own," said Brent Davis, Samaritan's Purse's Relief Teams Coordinator. "But we also want to be available to anyone who needs any help getting their homes back to normal."

Anyone in the Bonavista area requiring free clean-up assistance from Samaritan's Purse can call 1-866-628-6565.

The Samaritan's Purse Disaster Relief Unit is outfitted with essential disaster recovery equipment including generators, pumps, hand tools, and safety gear for volunteers. It serves as a base for volunteer response, and is equipped with a self-contained office, communications system, and other supplies.

Volunteers Needed

Samaritan's Purse invites volunteers from Atlantic Canada to join its clean-up efforts in the Bonavista area. Volunteers will pump out water, remove soggy debris, treat homes for mould, and do other recovery work. Safety equipment will be provided and volunteers will receive free on-site training. To volunteer, please call 1-866-628-6565.

Donations Needed

Donations are needed regularly to help stock and maintain the Disaster Relief Unit so it can be deployed quickly wherever needed. The unit has served alongside Samaritan's Purse Relief Teams after floods in Alberta and a violent wind storm in Ontario in 2010, after floods in New Brunswick and Wisconsin in 2008 and northern British Columbia in 2007, and after Hurricane Katrina along the U.S. Gulf Coast in 2005. To support the unit's ongoing work, call 1-800-663-6500 or visit www.samaritanspurse.ca (click on "Donate").

About Samaritan's Purse Canada

Samaritan's Purse Canada is an international Christian relief and development organization working in about 70 countries to provide aid to victims of war, disease, disaster, poverty, famine, and persecution. The Calgary-based charity also operates the well-known Operation Christmas Child program that sends gift-filled shoe boxes to needy children around the world each year, and the Turn on the Tap initiative that raises funds for life-saving BioSand Water Filters in the developing world. Go to www.samaritanspurse.ca for more information.

For further information:

Media Inquiries: Martin Silbernagel, Communications Advisor
1-800-663-6500 or 1-403-708-9667 (cell) - [email protected]