Help 500 families in Zim affected by Cyclone Idai

Help 500 families in Zim affected by Cyclone Idai 1st Quarter report
HOCIC in partnership with Fountain of Hope Foundation sent a team consisting of six people on a seven-day trip to Chimanimani from the 5th to the 11th of April 2019. The objectives of the trip were; to access and evaluate the extent of damage caused by the cyclone, to carry out a needs assessment, to partner with like minded organisations working in the areas to provide psycho social support, reconstruction of infrastructure such as roads damaged by the cyclone and distribute stationery and clothing donations to the cyclone survivors.
The team took a tour of the Ngangu area in order to assess the impact socio-economic, environmental and psychological damage caused by the cyclone. Members of the team spoke to various community members who narrated what happened before, during and after the cyclone. The storm that caused the most damage occurred at around 2100hours on Friday the 15th of March 2019, the mud and rocks that caused the destruction went on for about forty-five minutes to an hour. Those that resided at the higher areas were mostly the survivor and those in the lower levels were washed away together with their houses, cars and all any other moveable things in the area. Roads in the area were all destroyed and barricaded by the washed away objects and most of the schools’ toilets in the area were destroyed but the classrooms were left intact. Scores of the survivors’ sort refuge in the schools, churches and the hotel which were left standing during the cyclone.
HOCIC and Fountain of Hope Foundation partnered with Econet who had mobilised community volunteers and provide materials to use, such as wheelbarrows, shovels, picks and protective clothing, to clear the debris and reconstruct the roads using available resources such as rocks and soil. During the work the team spoke to the volunteers and most of them indicated that they lost their livelihoods to the cyclone and had no idea how to provide food and all other necessities for their families. Some of the volunteers also stated that they had joined the team of volunteers to try find the bodies of their loved ones who had still not been found and were believed to be buried under the debris. Some of the team members also joined the Econet Higher life foundation who were conducting registrations of children who lost their caregivers to the cyclone for school fees aid and other school related necessities. During this it was noted that there was a high number of children who went into the holding camps without caregivers and were being looked after by the adults they went into the camps with who were either complete strangers or were previous neighbours.
The team also took time to play and talk to the children who were living at the Chimanimani hotel. The children found the play time refreshing and for a moment brought normalcy to their lives that had been turned upside down overnight. The team had also received a large donation of stationery which was handed over to the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education to be distributed to the schools accordingly. Clothing donations were also distributed to the people living at the hotel. As they received the clothing, they expressed gratitude and also stated that their main worry was accommodation. They were concerned about getting homes where they could be able to resume their normal lives and carry out income generating activities to enable them to fend for their families. Amongst the people residing at the hotel were pregnant women who expressed great worry because they were almost due to give birth but had nothing as all their belongings were lost during the cyclone, Some had received mama kits from UNFPA but stated that these were not enough as they also need diapers, baby clothes and other essentials for new born.
The trip was fruitful as the team members managed to note a number of needs in the area, such as ablution facilities for the schools, school uniforms, stationery, housing, essentials for new born babies and psycho social support for the children as they return back to school. Since the trip HOCIC has been able link a family with someone who could provide housing in a different district which is less likely to experience the same disaster. However, nothing more has been done due to a lack of funding.