I hope that you all are doing well in this very difficult time. GIBTK team is doing well and we are still getting things going in South East Asia. Today, the journal was written by Tam, the leader o f GIBTK. Let her tell you about what happened. And we are also planning to do a virtual event on Nov 7th, so stay tuned.
On Sept 19th, I got a phone call from our partner, Quang Nam charitable association to ask for help. He talked about the damage and the loss of people caused by the recent NOUL typhoon, landing in the central of Viet Nam on Sep 18th. Although Quang Nam was not in the middle lane of this typhoon, Tay Giang district - the mountainous are of Quang Nam was deeply affected by heavy rained caused by this typhoon. The heavy rain created a flash flood which swept away all the belongings of several families. He asked if GIBTK could do a relief trip to the people there but it was not about food or supplies. It was about clean water. He said people severely needed clean water there. Answering that call without any hesitation, GIBTK said yes. We would be able to make a trip on Monday - Sep 21st thanks to our amazing team. Decision was made and everything was prepared on Sunday.
It took us 3 hours and half to get there. Road was not good, landslides were every where on the way. Few staff members got sick because of bad road but when we got there, we got to work as if nothing ever happened lol.
While our team and volunteers from the commune installed the filters into the buckets, I made a trip to the village to visit few families to see how the flood affected their life. Although I did not see water, the scenario around their house told the whole story. One lady lost all rice, ducks and chickens; her family's clothes were soaked into yellow mud and were piled up in a big bucket. Her family must go eat at someone else's house because no clean water to cook. Good thing is that she can cook today because she got a water filter.
100 water filters were distributed to the people in A Tieng commune today. 1 filter will provide clean water to 3 families near by. Yes, it is is a relief trip And doing relief but bringing the long-term effect to improve people's health!!! Thank you ATTA for giving us opportunity to serve people today. This is huge!!!
Po Loong Thi Moi's story
"Residing in Ta Vang hamlet, Tay Giang district, Quang Nam province, Po Loong Thi Moi and her parents are struggling with something called life after flood. Unlike their neighbors, it was quite blessing for the family when they suffered from no property damage as their house was located in a higher place when the flood came. However, Moi said it makes no difference now. They still have rice in the bucket but they cannot cook it at all because of having no clean water. It is a bitter reality for her family. The water pipes which transfers water from the jungle was swept away, leaving her and all the families in the neighborhood with thirst and lack of other hygienic fundamental needs. What her family is relying on to is some instant pack noodles and some water bottles delivered by the government. They eat the noodles without boiling them as they want to save the little amount of water for drinking. Things are even worse to Moi when she has had thyroid tumor for six years. Eating raw noodles is so difficult for her to swallow and it even leads to her current headache and vomiting. Moi was looking at the water this morning and waiting for it to be better but things seemed not to happen as she wished, until GIBTK and ATTA brought water filters to her village. Moi was excitedly waiting to receive the gadget. She is happy to have rice in her meal tonight!"
(Moi is with big smile and in black jacket)
Zo Ram Thi Chuop's story
"Recalling the horrible memory of the flood, Chuop said it was so fortunate for her and her son to have survived through the disaster, but during the last couples of day, dealing with the consequences is very challenging for her and other people in the village. The flood resulted in housing damages, property loss and debris but the thing that is making her suffering the most is clean water shortage. Chuop said she can get by when there is no electricity but having no clean water is miserable for her and her son. They cannot carry out their very basic daily activities such as showering or cooking meals. For the last few days, Chuop and her son eat raw instant noodles given by the local government and some charities. When they are fed up with it, they roast cassava to eat as this does not need water to be cooked. For these reasons, her son has had diarrhea and even she is feeling unwell. She was filled with the feeling of hopelessness as she knows that if this continues, worse things will be most likely to come. However, receiving the filter and seeing the GIBTK's staff demonstrating the wonderful usage of the device, Chuop said her concern was finally lifted off from her shoulders. She is grateful for bringing the filter timely."
With love
Tam Tong
