Personal protection, water disinfection and hygiene kits distributed

This week Save the Children distributed 2230 hygiene packages and personal protection kits to residents of Samac, Orasje, Žepce, Zavidovici, Zenica and Brcko District who are dealing, for two months now, with the consequences of the floods that hit Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Croatia the past May. Additionally, 1230 packs of water disinfection product were distributed in Samac, Orasje and Brcko District, to the families that use water from wells and are not connected to the public water system.

Four days of continuous rain caused the biggest floods since records began in BiH and Serbia, and with landslides that followed, the official estimate is that 3.27 million persons were directly affected in both countries, while Save the Children estimates that this number includes at least 275,000 children. Large number of people is still not able to return to their homes that were damaged or destroyed by the floods and landslides. Many lost their only source of income to floods.

“We are a family of six, with two children, the third one on the way. Our house was flooded and significantly damaged. No one in the family is employed, we earn our living through agricultural production, but our crops are destroyed by the floods. 150 dunum, all destroyed,” says Ivanka from village of Vidovice near Orašje.

1230 personal protection kits consisting of rubber boots, shovels, gloves, face protection mask and disinfection product, as well as 1230 individual packages of product for disinfection of wells were distributed in Orasje, Samac and Brcko, thanks to the funds provided by the USAID.

“Every day we work hard to make sure that aid can reach those in need. Thanks to USAID and Canadian Government, this week the humanitarian aid reached 3460 families,” stated Ahmed Pjano, Save the Children Director of Programmes. “Even though more than two months passed since the onset of floods, our organisation continues its activities in order to help families to return to their homes damaged by floods as soon as possible and to make the cleaning process easier to those that already returned, making their living space habitable,” emphasized Pjano.

700 packages with hygiene products were delivered to Zavidovići (200), Žepče (200) and Zenica (300) and distributed to most affected families, while another 300 packages are ready for distribution in Maglaj. This donation of the total of 1000 hygiene products was made with funds from Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development.

Brcko District Government Department for Public Safety assisted in distribution of packages in Brcko District, Citizens Association Medica assisted in Zenica and in Zavidovići, Žepče and Maglaj the Red Cross of the Federation of B-H.