The following incident will give you an idea of what has happened, is happening and will probably occur in the future. Br.Rolando Lopez, who is helping with the coordination of aid in Trujillo, a city on the Honduran coast, told me that when a boat is sighted arriving with provisions, the people throng the beach and as the boat draws closer those who are strongest swim out, assault it and there on the spot eat all that is edible; the little that remains arrives on the beach and is then plundered by the hungry mob.

The hurricane has discharged so much rain over Central America that numerous rivers have burst their banks and flooded thousands of square miles of land. The force of the water has dragged down and destroyed hundreds of bridges and wiped entire villages off the map. The destruction of electricity and telephone lines has obstructed communication with the cities and the capital.

People who managed to save their lives speak of their terrible situation: they have no food; no drink, as the wells are contaminated; those who try wading through the water to get out of their isolation are victims of serious injuries and of respiratory and skin diseases; those who climb up the trees risk poisonous snake-bites. In Honduras they face the added danger of stepping over anti-personal mines, planted fifteen years ago during the Contra-Sandinista war in Nicaragua and now uncovered by the heavy rains. They have no light, no medicines. Everything breaks up and becomes contaminated and is ruined. For one or two days the people give and share what they have. But after that? The resources of the Central American Republics and the international aid are little in comparison with the dire necessity.

However the greatest problems are still to come. The danger of epidemics resulting from the human corpses and the thousands of carcasses of dead animals. Above all there are hundreds of thousands of families without housing, Perhaps it is in this area of health and housing that the reconstruction programmes of local governments and international aid will have to concentrate.

Faced with this immense suffering, in the name of our whole Franciscan Province and of our Minister Provincial who himself was trapped in an isolated area of Honduras but has subsequently been able to speak with me, I appeal to the generosity of the brothers in other parts of the world to help our people in the fastest and most efficient manner.

Those who wish to channel their help through our Province may do so by means of the following account number: