Help is needed to provide rubber boots for
3500 children at the Za'atari
"Winter Storm Batters Middle East"
The fiercest winter storm to hit the Mideast in years
brought a rare foot of snow to Jordan on Wednesday, caused fatal accidents in
Lebanon and the West Bank, and disrupted traffic on the Suez Canal in Egypt. At
least eight people have died across the region.
The unusual weather over the past few days hit vulnerable
Syrian refugees living in tent camps very hard, particularly some 50,000
sheltering in the Zaatari camp in Jordan's northern desert. Torrential rains
over four days have flooded some 200 tents and forced women and infants to
evacuate in temperatures that dipped below freezing at night, whipping wind and
lashing rain.
"It's been freezing cold and constant rain for the
past four days," lamented Ahmad Tobara, 44, who evacuated his tent when
its shafts submerged in flood water in Zaatari. A camp spokesman said that by
Wednesday, some 1,500 refugees had been displaced within the camp and were now
living in mobile homes normally used for schools. Weather officials said wind
speeds exceeded 45 mph and the rain left two feet of water on the
streets."
And APC has been making a difference, even before we knew
the need! As of Tuesday members and
friends of APC have contributed $1,229.50 to buy rubber boots for children in
the Zaatari camp. These children are
Syrian refugees who left their own country with such short notice that they did
not have time to bring much more than what they were wearing. We will be sending a check to help buy boots
within the week but if you want to contribute toward this, please do so with a
check marked children's boots and we'll send a second check within another 2
weeks. Many thanks to all who have
helped with this. All contributions are due by January 31st.
