Earthquake Strikes Ecuador

Over the past year, CARE’s response to the earthquake in Ecuador has benefited 37,493 people in 118 severely affected communities.

During the relief effort, CARE staff on the ground coordinated with the U.N., the government of Ecuador, and other humanitarian agencies to ensure that those most in need received support. We also incorporated a gender-focused approach to our relief efforts in all areas.

Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH): Given the widespread infrastructure damage, affected families needed clean drinking water and adequate sanitation facilities. CARE began distributing water the day after the earthquake hit. Our response team also installed public water points, temporary water tanks and toilets segregated by sex (to protect women from gender-based violence). We organized and trained community members and provided cleaning kits for them to maintain the toilets. CARE repaired 10 local water systems, distributed more than 30,000 water purification tablets, and disseminated messages about proper sanitation and hygiene practices. The team also delivered 4,112 hygiene kits that took into consideration gender- and age-based needs. Additionally, we provided affected communities with 8,792 mosquito nets to prevent the spread of mosquito-borne disease. CARE worked with UNICEF to rehabilitate 104 school bathrooms and provide health education in rural and peri-urban communities in Jama and San Vicente, benefiting 2,201 children and 84 teachers.

Shelter: People whose homes were damaged or destroyed required safe and secure temporary shelter, as well as support to rebuild or repair their houses. CARE launched efforts in remote areas, which were hardest hit by the earthquake, to help with rubble removal and provide temporary shelter materials. We delivered 1,050 rubble removal kits, 1,800 tents and tarpaulins, as well as rope and other building items, so that the most vulnerable families could build temporary shelters. Our staff also provided technical assistance to help communities safely rebuild permanent structures. In addition, CARE provided 2,000 mattresses and 2,439 kitchen kits to affected families. Finally, 370 families received cash for work, averaging $355 a family, to help them secure temporary housing.

Psychosocial support: CARE carried out psychosocial support activities for children to help restore their normal development. These activities had a strong gender focus and included the full participation of women, girls, boys and adolescents – strengthening their voice and self-esteem. CARE provided materials and training to teachers to help better support students affected by the earthquake. Finally, we carried out campaigns focused on preventing gender-based violence in affected areas.

To implement the initial response, reconstruction and longer-term rehabilitation efforts, we established theCARE Ecuador Strategy.The impact target of the strategy was to reach 36,000 individuals (7,200 households) by June 2019, with a fundraising target of $7.5 million over this three-year period. Generous gifts supporting the Ecuador Earthquake Humanitarian Response Fund have provided us flexible resources to address the rapidly changing needs of families affected by this crisis. Your gift has helped us position and deploy needed supplies and staff, make funds available to emergency-affected communities for immediate assistance, strengthen our ability to respond to future emergencies, and provide overall program oversight to ensure the highest-quality response.