Flood Report Update

-- Fe Canlas, 24 July 2006

On July 12, 2006, after two days of continues rain in the area, Sid and Eric decided to clean out the dirt that was clogging the grate in the big canal at the back of the house, as well as the canals surrounding the orphanage. That evening, at around 8pm we noticed that the street was flooding, and water was entering through the main gates of RCH. At that point, we felt we were safe because the water was safely going into the canal surrounding the cottages.

At approximately 11:35 pm the water overflowed from the creek at the other side of the street, as it was filled with the dirt of dried water lilies and this caused the small grate to break, and the overflow filled the open canal with dirt. The large volume of water from the creek and from further up the mountain flooded the Rehoboth compound. The water came into the office, schoolroom and the clinic building to approximately knee deep. The two residential houses were flooded to almost five inches in depth.

The caregivers immediately ensured the security of all the children. We called for help from the local church and Sid came to the rescue -- even the spouses of the caregivers on duty helped out. We worked together to stop further flooding. We tried to save the CPU's and other documents in the office, but were unsuccessful. Supplies in the clinic and in the preschool were also damaged. Many individuals from the church and other members of the Rehoboth staff (and their spouses), helped with the efforts. Sid and Pastor Ike and his team cleared the grates and the surrounding area. By 3:00 am, the waters had subsided, which allowed the houses to be cleaned.

The following items were damaged:

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