What could be worse than a pandemic? The dumpsite community has lost everything in a fire...
Updated: Aug 29, 2020
We've been a bit quiet here recently. We're all blaming the pandemic for putting things on the back-burner. But we've been jolted out of our complacency all of a sudden. The community that l visited in 2018 in Bulacan, the Philippines, have had their houses razed to the ground by a fire. These people had very little, but now they literally only have the clothes on their back.
The people are economic migrants who set up home next to the dumpsite in order to eek out a living finding things to recycle and sell. I suspect that the bags of recyclable material were quite combustible.
The fire took hold on 26 August. 117 adults, children and babies lost everything.
The community are being supported by KKFI and an appeal has gone out for donations. They are in need of food, clothes, slippers (flip-flops), nappies (diapers), and hygiene essentials. Locals have donated unwanted slippers and a colleague has organised a collection to provide every individual with a couple of pairs of underwear. We have sent a donation to help provide for immediate needs, but the needs will be ongoing, so if anyone feels moved to donate, the money will be put to good use.
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