Safe Spaces for Children Impacted by Peru Floods

Hello donors!

In the few months that All Hands has been in Huarmey, Peru the progress that’s been made is unbelievable. Each day more and more homes are cleared of mud and debris, allowing families to regain some sense of normalcy. When All Hands arrived, Huarmey resembled a ghost town. Many families had to flee to higher ground and away from the river, only to return to homes that were uninhabitable. Some families had to make do, living in mud covered homes because there was nowhere else to go. All Hands quickly got to work first helping those still living in the homes and then moving on to the families who needed to get back in them. The teams also focused on getting children back in schools, a vital part of restoring a community. With children back in their safe school spaces, parents are able to return to work and focus on the recovery process.

While initial assessments showed that many schools were impacted by the flooding and mud, it was later determined that most of the schools were able to be salvaged and there was only a need for Temporary Learning Centers in certain cases. One TLC was constructed in Huarmey, called Huamba Baja. This TLC allows 32 children to return to school while their permanent school is reconstructed. In the event that a school is still structurally sound and does not need to be demolished, All Hands is able to clear out the mud and debris and then complete mold remediation. Due to the remoteness of most schools in the region, a mobile sanitation team has been created. This small team of volunteers travels and camps out at different school locations for weeks at a time. This allows for the work to be completed faster and more efficiently, rather than a team trying to travel hours daily to get to some of the schools. Mold remediation and sanitation is one of the most important parts of the recovery process, simply mudding out is not always an option. To date, the team has sanitized seven schools, allowing over 1,300 children to return to their safe learning spaces.

The team in Huarmey has also been focusing on mudding out homes that were impacted, most of the homes in the area have been left completely untouched even months after the flooding has subsided. Several feet of mud is trapped inside these homes, causing structural damage and preventing many families from being able to get back in their homes. To date, All Hands has mudded out 71 homes and demolished 19 of them, impacting 524 people.

The work is not over and there is still much to be done. Thank you for your incredibly generous donation to this program, your support is integral to the recovery of the community of Huarmey. We hope that you continue to support All Hands’ work in Huarmey and other programs throughout the world.

Thank you!