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Funds Dispatched to Assist Post-Hurricane Recovery

ORLANDO, FL (September 14, 2004) - Covenant World Relief and the Evangelical Covenant Church have sent funds to the Southeast Conference office to help churches and individuals negatively impacted by Hurricanes Frances and Charley, while Florida residents brace themselves for the approaching Hurricane Ivan, which is packing sustained winds of 130 to 140 miles per hour.

"Covenant World Relief (CWR) also is responding through our partnership with World Relief International (WRI) in the hurricane disaster in the Caribbean," said CWR Director Jim Sundholm. Virtually every church and school building in the capital, St. George, has been destroyed, WRI reports, with nine of every ten homes severely damaged and lacking water and electricity. "Again our 'disaster response fund' provides an immediate response capability," Sundholm notes, "as we are increasing our response to persons, pastors and congregations in need in Florida." (For a close look at how one church responded to Hurricane Charley, please see An Inside Look at One Church's Response

Residents from southeastern Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle are being advised to prepare for a powerful shot, according to Buzz Bernard Sr., chief meteorologist for the online Weather Channel. "Ivan is not expected to be a category 5 storm when it arrives, but it still will be an extremely dangerous hurricane with sustained winds of perhaps 130 or 140 mph near its center," Buzzard warns. A hurricane watch remains posted from Morgan City, Louisiana, to St. Marks, Florida, and extends inland over southeast Alabama and southwest Georgia. "Conditions along the north-central and northeastern Gulf Coast will deteriorate rapidly late tomorrow as Ivan approaches," the meteorologist predicts, with landfall anticipated early Thursday morning.

"Although the storm surge (which could be as high as 13 feet along the Alabama coast) will be maximized near and just east of Ivan's eye, damaging winds and rising water could extend eastward as far as Apalachee Bay in Florida," Buzzard continued. "Even after Ivan swirls inland, heavy rain, damaging winds and tornadoes will plague much of Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi through the day Thursday and Thursday night. Thus, people in locations as far north as Birmingham and Atlanta should brace for damage, power outages and flooding."

As some wonder just how people can cope with the repeated succession of storms – Charley, Frances and Ivan – forecasters continue tracking two additional hurricanes that have been building for several days – Jeanne and Javier. Tropical storm Jeanne has formed in the northern Lesser Antilles with warnings in effect for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Jeanne is expected to strengthen as it swirls over Puerto Rico Wednesday. In the eastern Pacific, Hurricane Javier, packing sustained winds of 140 mph, is again gathering strength on a northwest course well off the Mexican west coast - it is expected to remain on that track for the next several days.

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