PHOTO UPDATE: Compassion Services Teams Serving Cyclone Survivors

Help the Cyclone Survivors

Cyclone Damage in Assam, Too A cyclone also hit Assam, India, on April 7. While it was not as devastating as the cyclone in Bangladesh and West Bengal, it blew roofs off houses and uprooted power lines. Some Bridge of Hope centers and churches in Assam were also damaged during the storm. GFA World Compassion Services teams are working to help the people in the affected area rebuild. The people in that area ask for prayer that the power would be restored and that all of their needs would be provided for. What is a Cyclone? A cyclone is generally described as a tropical storm with winds of at least 74 miles per hour that spin in a circular motion. The storms form over the warm tropical near the equator. The storms are a routine part of the weather pattern that forms over the Bay of Bengal during the hottest months of the year in that area.

GFA World Caring for Cyclone Victims in Bangladesh, West Bengal, India

GFA World Compassion Services teams are already on the ground caring for the victims of a powerful cyclone that ravaged West Bengal, India, and the neighboring country of Bangladesh.

A GFA World leader working in the area reported that at least 15,000 homes were destroyed. The official death toll stands at 80, but that is expected to rise as families clear away the rubble of their destroyed homes.

Thousands were injured in the storm, which swept across a district that borders India and Bangladesh. News reports say heavy rains after the storm inflicted further damage on the area.

"We have reports that there is no more room left in the hospitals to care for the wounded," said GFA World Director Dr. K.P. Yohannan.

The cyclone, with wind speeds of 99 miles per hour, flattened the simple homes, which are constructed of mud, tin and concrete.

GFA World Compassion Services teams are taking emergency relief supplies to the people in the affected areas. They will be handing out food, medical supplies, clothing and other household items.

"Ever since the 2004 Asian tsunami, we have been training our teams to respond so that the suffering people can be helped," Dr. Yohannan said. "We don't see it as a burden. We see it as an opportunity for these hurting people to experience Christ's love. Tens of thousands are hearing the Good News that Jesus cares as we come to their aid."

Once the emergency needs are met, the teams will turn their attention to helping people rebuild their homes.

"It's a foregone conclusion that we will continue working to help the suffering people find shelter and rebuild their homes," Dr. Yohannan said.

The teams assisting with the relief effort are working out of a GFA World-supported Bible college in the heart of the affected area. Amazingly, the school did not sustain any damage.

Dr. Yohannan does not yet have a full report on the damage to churches in the area as communication has been sketchy since the storm.

West Bengal and Bangladesh have a high concentration of the poorest of the poor residents of their respective countries. In Bangladesh, more than half the population—65 million people—live below the poverty line. That's more than five times the total population of Pennsylvania.

Last May more than 155 people were killed by Cyclone Aila when it swept across Bangladesh.

• See how GFA Compassion Services teams also reached out to survivors of Cyclone Aila last year.