Uganda Red Cross Volunteers on June 26th braved the night, cold and bloody boarder of Nimule – Connecting Uganda to South Sudan in rescue of refugees fleeing uncertainty when fighting broke out in Wau, South Sudan forcing thousands of people to flee to Uganda. The situation has since been tense and alarming. Hundreds of lives have been claimed in the fights and many more rescued because of the presence of Humanitarian support from key players like Uganda Red Cross.
Uganda Red Cross Volunteers have been working around the clock to support those in need, evacuating the injured, offering first aid to the wounded, and referring many others to nearby hospitals. In partnership with UNHCR, UNICEF, Office of the Prime Minister, URCS has been able to participate in registration of new arrivals, transferring people from transit centers to settlement Camps, preparation of meals for the victims, supporting medical teams to vaccinate little ones with polio and Measles vaccines, as well as carrying out tracing services to restore family links for those who need to trace for their loved ones.
URCS has availed tarpaulins to accommodate increasing number of refugees especially at the reception points, as well as Trucks to transfer others from reception centers to settlements camps. The process is not easy, the work is tough but the spirit of service compels the URCS Volunteers.
“The numbers are overwhelming but our team is dedicated to serve and we will do our best to serve every one. We pray that you join hands and support this operation because we don’t know when this will end and we still need more resources to meet the un-predictable needs of these people” says Robert Kwesiga, Secretary General – URCS.
Today, URCS records reveal over 26,000 people hosted in Camps as refugees. According to a Report by UNHCR, July 2016, since the fight started, about 8,337 arrive to Uganda every day.
This fighting is not the first of the kind in the same Country. It has been nearly two and a half years of fighting in south Sudan and Uganda is host to almost half a million refugees as victims of war. These include refugees from Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, Sudan, and Ugandans who have fled their homes due to inter-tribal conflicts. The Red Cross remains with a big challenge, at the fore-front with the mandate of rescuing, and saving the lives of these vulnerable people.
The current situation is very alarming. There is heavy congestion at the reception centers with thousands of children and women in the open yet most of the communities in Northern Uganda are experiencing heavy rains. This brings fear for serious health threats such as Cholera. Gaps are still being assessed and discussed with UNHCR for possible integration in the already ongoing SSRO project that is being implemented in three settlements of Maaji, Mungula and Boroli in the areas of WASH, livelihood and food security and peace and conflict management.
The need is overwhelming. URCS needs more resources to address this Humanitarian Cause!
