Nov. 24, 2008 issue
For MDS, a time of forgotten disasters
By Aimee Siebert For Mennonite Weekly ReviewFloods and hurricanes in the United States this year were severe but faded quickly from memory. “We are in a time of forgotten disasters,” said Scott Sundberg, Mennonite Disaster Service director of communications.
After Hurricanes Rita and Katrina in 2005, MDS received between $6 million and $7 million in donations for the rebuilding process on the Gulf Coast. The outpouring of financial generosity allowed MDS to increase its number of project sites from four to 12.
But after severe flooding in June in the Midwest, which Iowans called “their Katrina,” MDS received less than $40,000.
“I flew over the area,” Sundberg said. “It looked like the Great Lakes underneath us.“
Damage from hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008 “did not hit hubs of population like Katrina,” Sundberg said. “But some areas were devastated just as much as New Orleans.”
MDS received $14,000 desig-nated for relief from Gustav and Ike, but some areas of the Gulf remain untouched by basic cleanup and relief efforts.
Sundberg attributes the deterioration of support to “compassion fatigue,” which has many factors.
The economic downturn has made many people cautious about financial contributions. In the past, money was still donated, just in smaller portions. Now the funds sometimes do not come at all.
“There seems to be a different tone that I can’t quite put my finger on this time around,” he said.
Even before the economic crisis, there were other distractions, like the recent elections, that turned people’s attention away from natural disasters.
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