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Earthquake Update #4

We just had yet another aftershock.  They are so frightening.

No new news from our churches since the last update.  Once all our churches have been confirmed safe, our National Leadership will determine how we can best offer assistance.

The US Geological Survey has re-evaluated the quake as an 8.0 o the scale.

Below is an article from www.reliefweb.int that sums up the current situation well:

SITUATION

1. At 11:40:58 PM (Greenwich time) 6:34:56 PM local time, an earthquake measuring 7.9 degrees in the Richter scale struck in the Department of Ica. The epicenter was 25 miles (61 kilometers) westnorthwest of Chincha Alta, Peru, and 90 miles (161 kilometers) south-southeast of Lima, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The epicenter was 30.2 km depth (18.8 miles). The town nearest to the epicentre is Chincha Alta.

2. Several aftershocks have been registered and continue. The effects were also strongly felt in the capital, Lima.

3. According to preliminary reports, the numbers of reported dead and injured have been increasing, with the latest reports of 450 killed and 1,000 injured according to the Peruvian Civil Defence System - Instituto Nacional de Defensa Civil -Civil Defense Agency - INDECI).

4. Electricity and communications have been cut off in several regions rendering searches and assessments difficult.

5. The earthquake caused buildings to shake and hundreds of people to run out into the streets after. There are unofficial reports of damages in the provinces of Ica, Chincha, Canete, and Pisco. The INDECI reports that 337 houses collapsed, 2 hotels destroyed, and 2 health centres affected (preliminary assessment). Reports also refer to some damage to the historic centre of Lima

6. All flights from the international airport in Lima have been temporarily suspended.

7. As a preventative measure, a tsunami warning was issued for Chile, Colombia Ecuador and Peru by the Hawaii Institute of Geophysics

NATIONAL RESPONSE

8. The Peruvian Government has declared the state of emergency in the Department of Ica and Cañete province. The President of Peru made in a statement confirmed that all national authorities were on high alert to respond to the situation and that all health services and centres must be on red alert, requesting all doctors to make themselves available and for all services to be free of charge for those who may need it

9. INDECI is currently setting up a situation room to respond to the emergency. An INDECI Assessment Team has been deployed to the provinces of Ica and Chincha. An aerial assessment is planned for August 16.

10. A local team of 40 firemen with USAR capabilities is being deployed to Ica. The Ministry of Health has deployed medical teams to the Ica Department in support to the local hospitals.

INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE

11. The Resident Coordinator’s Office in Lima has activated an Emergency Operations Centre and is holding a meeting of the UN Disaster Management Team.

12. The UN is in close contact with the Government of Peru and has offered support and assistance, including possibly an UN Disaster assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) Team and the mobilization of Search and Rescue Teams. The UNDMT is awaiting feedback from the Government.

13. Emergency cash grants were released by UNDP (USD 100,000) and OCHA (USD 100,000)

14. The Peruvian Red Cross (PRC) has mobilised a National Intervention Team to the region of the epicentre to assess needs and damages caused to infrastructure. The Regional Representation of the IFRC in Lima is directly supporting the PRC, and both are closely coordinating with INDECI, OCHA and Partner National Societies. IFRC already had staff in the country working on a response to the cold wave, who are being re-allocated temporarily to provide response support.

15. Funds from the IFRC's Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) are being made available to support the response if needed.

16. The Pan American Disaster Response Unit (PADRU) in Panama is on standby to send tents, blankets, jerry cans and other provisions by plane if needs are confirmed.

17. The Chilean and Colombian Red Cross have offered their support to the National Society in Peru if needed.

18. Spain has also offered assistance and sent a rescue team of 15 rescuers and four sniffer dogs.

19. Oxfam deployed a team to Pisco and Chincha to assess most urgent needs of the affected population.

20. OCHA continues to closely monitor the situation, including through the Regional Office in Panama, and remains in contact, with the Resident Coordinator and will provide further updates on the situation.

21. This situation report together with further information on ongoing emergencies is also available on the OSOCC Internet Website http://www.unocha.org/vosocc and on the OCHA Internet Website http://www.reliefweb.int/.

Earthquake Update #3

(From Jarvis Ferguson)

From updating news, the earthquake was about 7.9 with epicenter south of Lima about 95 miles. As of the moment, we've had about 10 afterquakes that have measured about 5.0 on the scale. As to the city of Lima where we live, there is little damage except for a few adobe walls and buildings.

 

The zone affected to our south which includes the cities of Pisco, Chincha and surrounding villages has been heavily damaged, up to 70% destoyed, including hospitals. The main highway to the zone, The Panamericana, has been heavily damaged as well, so it is difficult to get aid to the area at this moment. Hundreds of deaths and injuries are being reported and updated.

 

The Wesleyan Church, which started in northern Peru 103 years ago, as yet does not have congregations in the area, although family members do live in the area.

 

I recently heard via telephone from our National Superintendent, Godofredo Mezones, who lives in the north. We are trying to communicate with our other pastors to see how their congregations in Lima and the mountains nearby are doing. Once communication is established, they will be looking at how the church can best respond.

For those in Texas and Louisiana, Kayleen Rosenquist, who is ministering in the Amazon, called this morning from Tamshiyacu to see how we are and to let us know she is OK.

 

Our pastors in Cusco, Jose and Cecil de Ita, are also doing well there. They felt the movement, but experienced no damage.

*Also, keep Dena in prayer, she is running a high fever this morning.

Earthquake Update #2

As most know from our communications last night or the news this morning, Peru was hit by it's strongest earthquake in 30 years, last night.

The 7.9 magnitude quake hit shortly after supper time and currently appears to have killed hundreds and injured thousands. Thousands of people are homeless outside of Lima and families still trying to communicate with their loved ones. Many slept in parks, public squares and their cars in fear of aftershocks last night, a decision that, with the current winter temperatures may heighten the death toll.

Again, we are fine. We felt the quake very strongly. I was upstairs with Shaylee ad Dena was downstairs feeding Micaiah. We grabbed the kids and got into doorway where we rode out the almost 2 minutes of shaking.

We will do our best to keep our friends and supporters updated as well as post any relevant information regarding if and how the North American Church, and idividuals, can participate in relief efforts.

We will be contacting our National Superintendent for the Wesleyan Church this morning in prayer that our churches and members are safe.

Elliott

Earthquake Update

As you may have seen on the news, Peru has been hit a magnitude 7.5 earthquake. We are all fine, if not slightly shaken (pardon the ill timed pun). There appears to be no damage to our house or neighboring buildings and we have received word that our mentors, Jarvis and Sue are safe and sound.

Please keep Peru in prayer as the nation recovers.

Sincerely,
Elliott, Dena, Micaiah and Shaylee Innes

New Fish Bowl Devotional Available
Click Here

Ok mom, here are your pictures.

Here Fishy, Fishy, Fishy

Matthew 5:14-16 

I went to college in Atlantic Canada where the people are french and the winters are hard.  I think it’s for this reason (the cold thing, not the french thing) that my Bible College had “the fish bowl”.

The fish bowl was basically a breezeway that was built onto the front of the girls dorm to (presumably) protect the ladies from the wind and snow as they were getting their keys out.

It’s true purpose though, was as a location to meet, talk and after a nice dinner at one of the 3 retaraunts in town (McDonalds, KFC or Tim Hortons), to stand in and whisper sweet nothings.

Many first kisses, I love you’s, heartfelt admiration, bitter fights and disagreements, ugly breakups and even proposals have happened in the fish bowl.

However, it was just that.  A fishbowl.  It is a room enclosed by 4 glass walls.  Whatever happens in the confines of the fishbowl are 100% public.  Every first kiss and breakup are available for the entire campus to be a part of.  In the fishbowl you work on your relationship knowing that at any moment the eyes of 230 people could be staring at your intimate moment, or even walk right into the fishbowl and stop whatever it is that has begun.

I don’t think we’re ever suppose to leave the fishbowl.  At college we chose when we would go and stand in the fishbowl.  At the time we may not have felt we had much choice because it seemed there was nowhere else to go, but the truth is, we chose that to be the place for first kisses and last words.  We chose when we would allow others to see the intimate times of our relationship.

In our journey with Christ, we don’t have that choice. The Bible is pretty clear that we live in a fishbowl, that every aspect about our faith is open for the world to observe, poke and probe.

If we are truly a city on a hill, our faith will not be a drunk in an alley.  It will be open for examination and not hidden, profoundly private.  The world will see whether or not we are being real with our creator and ourselves or if we are just faking it and have a surface level, “Jesus love me, this I know” sort of faith.

Throughout many Latin American countries, governments have come to the slums and poverty stricken neighbourhoods, especially on the coasts, heralding a love for the poor and offered to paint their houses bright colors of blues, greens, reds and pinks.

The result has been simple, tourists coming in on cruise ships now look at the mountains surrounding the cities and take picture, gawking at how pretty all those small, colorful houses look.  But if the tourist would think for a moment, and even take a moment to approach these “cities on the hill”, they would find that the children in those homes are still hungry, the fathers still come home in alcohol induced fits of rage and the water is not safe to drink.  All that happens to these “cities” has been an external facelift.

In the fishbowl, a facelift faith isn’t going to work.  In the fishbowl, the world will be able to witness our most intimate moments with God.  They will see when we struggle with questions or triumph in victory.  And at any moment another follower is able to walk into the picture and come alongside us, already knowing how we need their help, because they’ve seen us in the fishbowl, they’ve seen our pain and our joy.

The fishbowl is not a bad place.  It’s by watching us struggle and triumph that the world will see that this faith is more than just following ancient, dead words, but it is alive and changing people, and in the end “they will give honor to God” (2 Pet. 2:12).

These “Fishbowl Devotions” are my questions and studies, open to the world to question and comment and grow me in my faith.

I couldn't resist:

Mac Programs I Love

I must admit, I'm a Mac. I was a PC, but when my 2 yr old PC bit the dust last October, I opted for a Macbook. My logic was the insane reliability of their hardware and I decided I would get Mac with an Intel chip and run Windows.

It took me a few months to get my hands on a copy of Windows XP to install on the Mac and by then, I didn't want to. Mac had won me over.

So here, for my Mac lovin' friends, is a list of Mac Programs I love:

1. ieatbrainz: Compares the acoustical signature of your itunes library with that of an online database and gives you the correct song name, album, artist and composer. Great for getting rid of typos or problems like your computer listing "Dave Matthews Band" and "Dave Matthew's Band" as two different artists.
2. iPhoto Buddy: Creates multiple iPhoto libraries so that your pics don't get so cluttered. At one point I had about 3,000 pictures in one library and it would take almost 3 minutes to open the program. With iPhoto buddy, I have separated my pics into 4 different libraries and they open as a snap.
3. Quicksilver: I have not quite been evangelized to all of the glory of quicksilver, but to be able to open programs, folders and files in less time than it would take me to say "spotlight" is a time saver.
4. Audio Hijack Pro: One of the few programs on this list that you have to pay for, it takes my one complaint about my Macbook and throws it out the window. The speakers on the Macbook are awkwardly placed and very quiet. Audio Hijack allows me to crank the volume higher than the system would normally. This is a life saver when trying to watch a movie without headphones or external speakers attached.
5. Gmail notifier: A simple program, but it was the deal breaker to get me to switch to Gmail. Let's me know when I get a new email (and also when my gCal has new appointments coming up).
6. VLC: A media player that plays almost any format.
7. Skype: I love Macs built in video chat program iChat, and as far as I know, so do the other 3 people on the planet that use it. So because of a lack of users, I am forced to use another program to communicate, via video with the outside world (ie: grandparents). Skype is easy to use, has decent video and audio quality and has also been a huge help when I have been traveling with my Mac and gotten stuck in airports overnight. For pennies, you can use Skype to call land line phones from your computer.
8. Adium: I have friends that use almost any Instant Messaging program imaginable: GoogleTalk, MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, AOL Instant Messenger, and so on. Adium let's me have all of those contacts, and communicate with all of them in one program. I just long for the day the add Skype and video support.
9. Facebook Sync: Just what it sounds like. Merges your Facebook friends and their contact info such as email, address, etc. into your Mac's address book. Great program to use, especially when people won't reply to your Plaxo request ;). This program is very much a BETA program. It works, but it is not pretty.
   
10. iWork: I am slowly moving from Microsoft Office to Mac's own iWork programs for my word processing and presentation needs. The end result from these programs look slicker and more professional. The presentation software, Keynote, puts PowerPoint to shame on many levels. But true assimilation cannot take place until they come out with a spreadsheet program to replace Excel. Come and come quickly!

What are your Mac programs you love?