FPB increases number of Burmese volunteers participating in relief efforts, expands supply lines for critical materials
May 10, 2008
The people of storm-torn Burma are reaching out to those most affected by the cyclone. FPB's volunteers from Rangoon now number 70, and are organizing themselves into teams to improve their reach and efficiency. A Rangoon-based coordinator of FPB's relief effort explains "specific members of each team are being trained in needed areas of expertise, for example sanitation, refugee registration, water treatment, etc." As the teams visit storm refugees sheltered in monasteries and schools, they are organizing shelter residents to participate in projects such as clearing debris and building drainage channels.
FPB employees based in Rangoon are using their existing social and business networks to establish relationships that will ensure an ongoing supply of materials critical to the rebuilding effort. "We now have arrangements with local business people to provide us with tarps, rope, rice, and fish, and hope to expand this range of products as we do our assessments of what will be needed in the future."
Unfortunately, FPB staff members reported on Friday night that refugees at a school outside Rangoon were forcibly removed from the site by government officials and are now camping in unprotected areas outside the school grounds. "We received no explanation other than 'this is a school, you must leave.' We are extremely concerned as it has started to rain and the forecast is for heavy rain next week."
