BWA gives $10,000 in relief assistance to Caribbean Baptists

Washington — The world relief and development arm of the Baptist World Alliance has pledged initial sums of $10,000 to the Caribbean Baptist Fellowship (CBF) for relief assistance to victims of Hurricane Irene.

The Atlantic storm, which had reached the level of a category 3 hurricane, affected islands in the Caribbean including Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic), Puerto Rico, the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos; and large sections of the eastern United States including the states of New Jersey, Vermont, Rhode Island and Connecticut.

At least 55 people have died as a result of the hurricane and damage has been estimated in the billions of dollars to businesses, homes, roads, bridges and other structures.

Everton Jackson, executive secretary/treasurer of the CBF, reported “some countries experienced greater levels of devastation than others.” The Turks and Caicos Islands “experienced more flooding than infrastructural damage” while “some Islands in the Bahamas were badly hit.” On Acklins Island in the Bahamas, 90 percent of structures have been damaged, and the local church was destroyed. “It is clear,” Jackson claimed, “that urgent help is needed for the affected areas and people. … Their immediate needs are for water, tarpaulins, food, and building materials, among other things.”