Wednesday 21 July 2010
Brazilian ShelterBox houses Brazilian family
The Silva family and their ShelterBox; the first ShelterBox funded by donations from Brazil. Photograph: Mike Greenslade
The first ShelterBox sponsored by donors from Brazil was allocated to a family in Uniao Dos Palmares yesterday.
42 year old Everaldo Carlos Mendosa and his wife, Maria Jose Silva, lost their home in the flash floods that ravaged the area a month ago.
Mrs Silva, aged 26, said: ‘The water came so quickly that we only had time to rescue the children before the house was washed away.’
The torrent of water destroyed the whole street. The couple and their 4 young children, Marcus Venicious,9, Victor Manuel, 8, Maria Victoria, 5, and Maria Viviani, 4, had been temporarily housed in a nearby school along with several hundred others.
ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) member, Mike Greenslade (AU), said: ‘They’ll move into the ShelterBox camp this week when work on providing water and sanitation is complete.
‘It’s quite by chance that Brazil Box 1 has been sent to Brazil and it is fitting that it should go to such a deserving family.’
SRT member Jodie Hurt (UK)at the ShelterBox camp in Uniao Dos Palmares, Alagoas, Brazil. Photograph: Mike Greenslade
SRT Leader, John Cordell (US) added: ‘A lot of teamwork has gone into creating this camp and laying foundations for others and I’ll find it rewarding to finally relieve the pain and suffering of such patient and dignified people.’
A break in the weather has enabled local government contractors to make good progress on new sites in both Branquinha and Murici, whilst US SRT members, Gary Boe and Ryder Evans, have erected the first tents in the town of Cortes.
New sites are also being prepared in and around the town of Palmares, where SRT efforts will now concentrate. More boxes and a fresh team are on the way to Brazil and will arrive this weekend.
