SOLOMON ISLAND FLOOD TRAGEDY: SUPPORT FUND
If you feel moved to help RELICS has an appeal box in-store on our counter just inside the door:
86 St. Andrew Street, Dunedin
No donation is too small, and we really appreciate your love, care and support!
Honiara disaster update 11/4/14
I have just spoken with one of my cousins Chanel Iroi. Chanel was trained in New Zealand as a meterologist and is part of the government emergency support team in Honiara. He had this to say to me today:
"we are working around the clock to get relief supplies to camps. Most camps are using schools so its affecting starting of schools as well...the immediate task is to reduce the number in those camps. we are looking at volunteers..especially those whose homes are still ok...the government might look at assisting them. at the moment there are more than 8,000 people in the evacuation centres and looking after them is a great challenge"
Local Solomon Islanders in Dunedin have also started an appeal for practical goods such as clothing, blankets, mosquito nets and bedding. If you would like to donate please contact:
Joy Breward 0273301906
Ivica Gregurec 0223196709
If you have fundraising ideas yourself, we welcome your kiwi ingenuity!
The Solomon Island community in New Zealand is small, but with your help we can change lives.
Join our facebook page for more info! 
DUNEDIN SI FLOODS HELP
Funds are also being raised through SOLOMON OUTREACH SOCIETY (NZ Charitable Trust 2582042)
If you would like to make a larger donation or you are outside Dunedin, you can do so by depositing into the following account:
SOLOMON OUTREACH SOCIETY
Account No: 38 9015 0032073 01
Tagio tumas! Thank you!
Solomon Outreach Society* is a charitable trust that helps Solomon Island communities source practical aid, medical supplies and school equipment, to assist communities towards great education and good health. Past projects have focused on sourcing second-hand items in New Zealand and recycling items such as desks, books, chairs and clothing, and shipping to communities in Solomon Islands to give children and their families practical support. Following the 2014 flood disaster in Honiara, your monetary support will be channelled directly to aid organisations volunteering and supporting our Honiara families.
*New Zealand Charitable Trust No. 2582042
A Reflection on how this disaster is affecting Solomon Islanders 6/4/14
I am a Solomon Island-New Zealander. For all of us Solomon Islanders, watching the news of substantial flooding in our capital Honiara in the last few days has been absolutely heartbreaking. Many of us have still not been able to confirm the whereabouts of our family members, and we are left wondering about the safety of our loved ones. In any country a tragedy such as this pushes resources to the limits, but for us the one town that is the hub of our country has been battered and devastated, and we just do not have the infrastructure or internal support to be able to handle such a disaster.
Fig 1 & 2. Before flood - © Photos courtesy Sally & Peter Hundleby 2012
Fig 3. Old Mataniko Bridge collapses 3/4/14
Fig 4. Flooded Mataniko river 4/4/14
Fig 5. Searching for loved ones 4/4/14
The worries for us are not just finding and grieving the bodies of those who have died (official numbers are now at 21 and rising - many are still missing) but also about enabling those who are alive to be able to survive. These are the problems our families now have to deal with:
- Gardens and agriculture have been devastated. Everybody in Honiara relies on home-grown vegetables and fruit to survive (usually bought daily from the big outdoor market in downtown Honiara... picture a massive Farmers Market). Speaking with cousins today they told me the daily market has very little fresh food left. In the next few days we expect most people will resort to a plain rice diet. It will be many months if not years to return gardens to their former state. (Supermarkets as we have in New Zealand are small and very expensive, and generally not used for fresh produce).
Fig 6 & 7. Honiara main marketplace - © Photos courtesy Sally & Peter Hundleby 2012
- The town water supply has been shut down. This is because the water is so polluted from the flooding, and I am told many main pipes have burst. Water is being delivered to people, but as of this afternoon (3 days since the flooding began) my family in a central Honiara area, had not yet seen any water. In areas that are more rural and cut off by destroyed bridges, getting fresh and clean water is even more difficult.
- Diseases such as Malaria and Dengue Fever (both of which are common in Solomon Islands) become an even bigger problem with large amounts of water, where mosquitos can breed in even greater numbers. Outbreaks of disease such as Cholera and problems with dysentery are likely, and large groups of people and overcrowding in evacuation centres can add to the spread of deadly disease.
- Many are homeless - the numbers are now climbing. I have personally heard estimates between 10,000 to 35,000. Most Solomon Islanders live in 'leaf-haus' accommodation, temporary housing made from local plants. Many of those homeless have lost all their belongings, their clothing, and shelter.
Fig 8 & 9. Typical leaf haus in Honiara - © Photos courtesy Sally & Peter Hundleby 2012
It will probably be many weeks before we find out the true extent of damage and how much those in rural areas have suffered. Currently we can only be sure of the devastation in the main town area, because we can see footage and talk with people via phone. In the rural areas, we just will not know until support workers can reach them. The truth is that Solomon Islanders are resilient, and we will help each other to get through this. But we can do with all the help we can get.
Links to NEWS ARTICLES about Guadalcanal Flooding:
Solomon Star article 7/4/14 - Helicopter food delivery to isolated West Guadalcanal 7/4/14
Pacific Scoop article 9/4/14 - Brave boy tells of surviving flood
Solomon Islanders LOVE music. Bob Marley is probably the most famous and loved musician in Solomon Islands.
Funds raised will be channeled through SOLOMON OUTREACH SOCIETY (NZ Charitable Trust 2582042)
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