One thing I’ve learned over the past 2 weeks is that the Brazilian people are hardy folk. Picking up a shovel, they pry open the doors to their homes and start shoveling out the mud and hauling out their belongings. Huge piles of everything they own start accumulating on the street in front of the houses, some of which have been underwater for almost 5 weeks.
As we went to check on the different areas affected by the flooding, we’ve seen the resilience of these people, have heared their stories and prayed with them. We also spent a few days assisting with cleanup alongside some of the local churches.
A lot of the places got cleaned up in a matter of days when the water receded. In other places, the flooding persists and pumps are being used in areas that have no drainage.
Over the past few days, the rain has let up, greatly decreasing the chance of any more dams overflowing, and the subsequent need for evacuations that would have created. Many houses remain underwater and it will take some time until they are ready to be cleaned, while thousands of others will need to be rebuilt. At this time, our scout team is pulling out as the immediate needs are fairly well covered by the large numbers of Brazilian volunteers.
Pray for the people we’ve been able to reach, for God to touch their hearts and draw them to Him in these difficult times.
