 |
| Two children in Indonesia |
July 19, 2011: Mount Lokon, on the northern tip of
Indonesia’s Sulawesi Island, had been dormant for years until last Thursday, when overnight eruptions sent residents fleeing for their lives. The volcano’s strongest blast came on Sunday, sending ash 11,400 feet into the sky and forcing 5,000 displaced residents back into emergency shelters.
The spewing of ash from the 5,200-foot mountain has compelled vulnerable families to relocate to schools and mosques, according to The Washington Post. More than 33,000 people reside on the slopes of the volcano, which produces rich soil for growing coffee and cloves.
Irwan Lalegit, head of the Indonesian Red Cross’s (PMI) disaster emergency response coordination for North Sulawesi Province, told IRIN news service that the PMI has erected a public kitchen and distributed masks, blankets, and sleeping mats to the displaced.
So far, only one death -- from heart attack -- has been reported from Mount Lokon’s eruption. The international airport in nearby Manado is operating normally, according to an airport spokesman.
SOS Has History of Aiding Indonesian Natural Disaster Victims
 |
| SOS Mother with her three children in Indonesia |
Although Mount Lokon’s recent volcanic blasts have so far not been deadly, the mountain is one of 129 active volcanoes in an archipelago nation that is prone to lethal volcanoes and earthquakes. Indonesia sits on a string of faults lining the Pacific Ocean.
With eight SOS Children’s Villages across Indonesia and almost forty years of experience helping vulnerable Indonesian children and families, SOS is on site to provide relief when disaster strikes.
When the terrible earthquake and tsunamis of December 2004 slammed into Sumatra, killing 100,000 people, SOS sprang into action. Under very trying circumstances, the organization offered immediate relief measures to traumatized children and homeless families. SOS then built more than 500 private houses and several community centers near Banda Aceh and Meulaboh. By 2007, generous donations and close cooperation with the local authorities led to the creation of three new SOS Children’s Villages.
Giving Vulnerable Children Hope
SOS raises children whose parents are unable to care for them due to absence, death, illness, or poverty. When natural and man-made disaster occurs, SOS is there to offer swift assistance, especially to children who so often are the hapless victims of circumstances beyond their control.
Help SOS Children's Villages build their emergency relief program so that they can continue to give immediate relief to children in disaster situations. Please donate now. Just $10 can buy a meal for a hungry SOS family of 10 children.
