Siem Reap Floods – Kaliyan Mith Program Director Ampor Updates Us
Ampor Sam-Oeun is the program director of Friend’s program Kaliyan Mith in Siem Reap. As the situation with flooding there worsens, she has sent us an e-mail to update us. You can read some excerpts from that mail below, which give a real on-the-spot sense of the issues and pressures faced by the teams…
‘Hi all,
Even if we had no rain last night, the river overflowed and Siem Reap town is again under water. As the water increased very quickly this morning and started to flood the old market, we closed the Tooit Tooit shop and moved the products in our office. The water reached also the DIC, then all materials and furniture have been moved in the first floor.
(latest news is the DIC (drop-in center) is now completely flooded)
Transitional Home, office, restaurant twin houses and Anlong Pi are ok for now. EC/TC (educational/training centers) is ok except the access. However, for safety, maximum of equipment and furniture are being moved at upper level.
The situation in the surrounding communities is more or less ok for now.
One of our staff (Maneth EC/TC Project Manager) who live along the river and who had to move last week during the first round flooding will be relocated temporally in the restaurant house n. 1 with his family.
In summary… worse is expected if it keeps raining.
The French consulate has sent an alert message this morning asking all French people to be very careful and evacuate Siem Reap or at least the further possible from the river bank because of high flooding risks which is expected to be worse than last week. I am also moving with family in a hotel for the second time.
We have with the team organized for Pchum Ben holidays an emergency stand by. We are 7 managers all staying in Siem Reap during holidays, including me, who agree to stand by. We have passed information to all our beneficiaries in communities that in case of emergency they can call at anytime the hotline. The hotline staff has the list of all standby managers phone numbers.
We have contacted DSAVY (Department of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation). They will provide a space in one of their center with a capacity of -/+ 30 people in case of families emergency evacuation.
By the time I am writing this email, heavy rain started. I am sending back all staff at home. It is safer.
Thanks.
Ampor
Direct donations to assist the work of our teams in Siem Reap can be made by bank transfer (details below)
BANK NAME: ANZ Royal Bank of Cambodia Limited
BANK ADDRESS: 100 Preah Sihanouk Boulevard, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
SWIFT: ANZBKHPP
ACCOUNT NAME: Friends-International Siem Reap
ACCOUNT NUMBER: 800959
Thank s to all who have already donated or have sent messages of support and encouragement to us, our beneficiaries and our teams are very grateful for the assistance you have given.
