An estimated 2 million families areaffected
ATLANTA (November 1, 1999) -The international relief and development organization CARE is providingemergency aid to people in Orissa, India, hit by a second devastating cyclonein less than two weeks. The government of Orissa has asked for assistancewith food, essential clothes, medicines and household items. CARE was alreadyproviding food for half a million people in Orissa's Ganjam district aswell as shelter for 10,000 families following the first cyclone.

"These people have lost everything,"explains Nita Hassan, CARE's program officer for Asia. "Our initialwork must be to ensure that they have shelter, and enough food and cleanwater. After that, we will look at how we can help them in the longer term."

The second cyclone started to batterthe shores of Orissa, on the Bay of Bengal, on Friday night with windsof over 160 miles per hour driving waves up to 18 feet high. Vast tractsof coastal land are submerged, more than 200,000 homes are reported tohave been destroyed, communication lines and electricity supplies severelydamaged, and hundreds are feared dead. More than 2 million families areaffected. Many have been driven from their homes and have no food or drinkingwater. Many towns and villages are still cut off by flooding in the tenmost affected districts, which comprise the rice bowl of the state. Cashcrops worth more than $23 million have been destroyed.

Special Food Shipment Arrives Today

CARE's first special train shipment offood arrived today, the first food aid to reach Orissa following the secondcyclone. It will be enough to feed 22,000 families for one month. CAREalso is routing additional food from Calcutta in West Bengal and Vishakhapatnamin Andhra Pradesh.

CARE has committed $2.4 million in foodassistance so far to the victims of the cyclone, plus $264,000 in shelterand other non-food assistance. It is now intensifying efforts to help peoplein the Cuttack district, the worst hit by the second cyclone.

CARE staff from the neighboring stateof Andhra Pradesh are now reaching the affected areas. They are workingwith staff from CARE's operations in West Bengal in overseeing the deliveryof relief supplies, in close coordination with the government of Orissa.

CARE has worked in India for almost 50years. It implements projects in nutrition, health care, small enterprisedevelopment and basic girls' education, and provides emergency relief asneeded. CARE works in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh,Maharashtra, Orissa, Rajastan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. It also worksin the neighboring countries of Bangladesh and Nepal.

CONTACT: Susan Aitkin, (404) 681-4579,ext. 203. Cell phone: (404) 374-3926.

CARE
151 Ellis Street NE
Atlanta, GA 30303-2439
1-800-521-CARE, ext. 999
info@care.org

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