Archbishop Thomas Msusa of Archdiocese of Blantyre of the Catholic Church has appealed to well-wishers to support Cyclone Freddy survivors with building materials to enable them restart their normal life.

He made the request on Thursday when he led the Catholic Development Commission in Malawi (Cadecom) in donating relief items to 262 families affected by the cyclone at Mlambe Camp in Chamba Village, Traditional Authority Kuntaja in Blantyre.

Msusa said: “I have seen many poor people in this remote rural area who were affected by cyclone Freddy and they seriously need support. The cyclone happened some two months ago and some people might think that everything is now over, but these people still need help and the emphasis should be on rebuilding because most of their houses were washed away.

Msusa (2nd L) hands over a relief package to a beneficiary

“So, they need materials such as iron sheets and other supplies to build strong houses that can withstand similar cyclones in future.”

Speaking on behalf of group village head Bwanasompho, Maia santo thanked Cadecom for the assistance and asked other well-wishers to emulate the gesture.

She also appealed for building materials to help them reconstruct new homes.

“We were sent back home when the government started decommissioning temporary evacuation camps, but we do not have permanent shelters to accommodate us and we need bricks, cement, iron sheets and other building materials,” said Santo.

The donated items included kitchen utensils, water, sanitation and wash products, blankets, solar-powered torches and a 10-kilogramme bag of maize flour to each family.

Department of Disaster Management Affairs recently disclosed plans to conclude the decommissioning of camps next month, having already closed about 75 percent of the camps in 10 Southern Region districts affected by Cyclone Freddy

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