CHICAGO (ELCA) -- An earthquake-triggered tsunami (tidal wave) off the northern coast of Papua New Guinea killed as many as 3,000 people July 17. Seven heavily populated villages in the West Sepik region were washed away by the 23-foot waves, leaving more than 6,000 homeless.
"Most of the people who died were children and women," said Belletech Deressa of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's Division for Global Mission. "Many people couldn't run away because the tidal wave came so suddenly." Most survivors suffered broken bones and internal injuries.
"It is very difficult to assess the number of those killed because many of the bodies are difficult to recover. It is estimated that it could be up to 6,000, but at this time we know of about 3,000," said Deressa.
"Dr. Ranaivoson Mami, an ELCA missionary working in Madang, indicated that the affected area, Aitape Sanduan Province, is primarily Catholic," said Deressa. Other parts of the country include many Lutheran churches that will provide assistance, "such as burying the dead, and trying to provide food and medical assistance to survivors."
Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Bill Skate has made an appeal to the Papua New Guinea Council of Churches, which includes the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea with 815,000 members and the Gutnius Lutheran Church with 95,000 members. Both churches and the ELCA are members of Lutheran World Federation, a global communion of 124 Lutheran churches in 69 countries.
"We need to pray for the people of Papua New Guinea who have lost, just in a second, 3,000 people or more. We ask members of our congregations to pray for victims and their families," said Deressa.
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Editors: When listing organizations receiving funds for aid to
survivors of major disasters outside of the United States,
Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands, please include:
Lutheran World Relief
390 Park Avenue South
New York, NY 10016
212-532-6350
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