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Reaching Thousands in Need in Sri Lanka
By Rukshan Ratnam, IFRC, and Stacey M. Winston, American Red Cross - Ampara, Sri Lanka
Sunday, June 26, 2005 — An older woman, who is a mother of seven, sits on the ground at a Red Cross distribution center in Ampara, Sri Lanka. With arms around her knees and her eyes brimming with tears she talks about how much she misses her husband. She calls herself Mrs. Poornama, and she lost her husband as well as her home to the December 26 tsunami. Beside her is a package of relief supplies -- hygiene and household items -- provided by the Red Cross.
Photo: Stacey Winston/American Red Cross
A mother of seven who has lost her home and husband to the December 26 tsunami receives much-needed household and hygiene supplies at a Red Cross distribution center that provides relief supplies packages to approximately 1,500 families daily in Ampara, Sri Lanka.
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"The things that the Red Cross gives help a lot," said Poornama who must now struggle to rebuild her life and cope with her grief. "We have what we need at the moment -- we can go on with life."
In Sri Lanka, the Red Cross relief team made up of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies including the American Red Cross operates six days a week providing relief supplies to up to 1,500 families every day.
While nothing can replace the life of a loved one, Red Cross and Red Crescent supplies and assistance help ease the suffering while families move through a natural progression of grieving and begin rebuilding their lives.
The Ampara district was one of the worst hit areas in the region. More than 10,000 people from this area alone lost their lives; entire villages were completely destroyed by the tidal wave. While the team is methodic to maintain order and efficiency in providing aid and distributing packages that include household goods as well hygiene and baby care supplies, the operation could never become routine. Every day brings different faces and stories, but there is a shared sadness in the words of the survivors.
"I lost my only grandchild to the tsunami," said S. Vigneswari, who recently returned to Sri Lanka from India where she was working in December. She is caring of her daughter, who lost her house and child to the destructive tsunami. Without a job, Vigneswari finds it hard.
Photo: Stacey Winston/American Red Cross
A disaster mental health counselor and volunteerfor the Red Cross Psychosocial Support Program team from the Sri Lanka Red Cross Society speaks with tsunami survivors in a
shady area of the relief supplies distribution center in Sri Lanka.
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"Red Cross assistance is welcome," she said. "It provides us with the things that are necessary."
Dealing with the grief left in the wake of this tragedy is a daily challenge for the survivors. Red Cross volunteers trained in psychosocial support services disaster mental health counseling are on hand at the distribution center. They encourage children who come to join them in an area where mats are set up with various toys and activities. Soon the children are tossing plastic balls, playing cricket, blowing up balloons and talking with the volunteers.
"By being at the distributions, we can meet the people, inform the community and identify the psychosocial needs for the people," said Red Cross Psychosocial Program coordinator K. L. Nusrath. He explains that their support isnt limited to the emotional state of survivors. "If a man loses his job, I can inform [him] about livelihoods programs; or, if we see a pregnant lady, we can ask if she has been to a clinic and tell her about the clinic so she can receive medical advice."
On this day, keeping survivors who are picking up relief packages comfortable and protected in the intense heat is a priority. Registration lines are shifted to areas of shade and those with special needs, such as pregnant women and the elderly, are given preference while the team processes as many registrants as possible. But, a small commotion near one of the lines draws the attention of the relief team; an elderly woman has fainted. Tharanga Pradeep of the Sri Lanka Red Cross Society and Tracy Raines of the American Red Cross are quick to respond. It is determined that the woman needs medical attention. They get the woman to a vehicle that will take her to the nearest hospital, and assure her and her daughter that the supplies will be waiting for them when they return.
Though the focus of the operation is shifting from the emergency to long-term recovery phase, relief operations including supplies distribution and sheltering will continue so that survivors can move forward rebuilding their homes, livelihoods and lives.
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