The invitation is a follow-up to members of the faith after initial spiritual and physical support offered by the branch office to both members and non-members affected by the deluge and inferno on June 3.
In a letter to the congregation of the faith in the Accra Metropolis, the branch office, located in Nungua, on the Accra-Tema beach road, urged members to channel their donations through the Co-ordinators of the Bodies of Elders in their local congregations.
The relief items being sought are food items, clothing materials, water, building materials, cash, accommodation; and volunteers to work on damaged properties of affected persons in the Adabraka and Alajo areas in Accra.
Mr Nathanael Gbedemah of the Public Information Desk of the branch office in a follow-up interview on the letter with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), confirmed that about 250 Witnesses were affected and displaced by the floods, but there had not been any report of the loss of any Witness.
According to Mr Gbedemah, in addition to the initial relief items, the Scriptures were used to comfort fellow-Witnesses and non-Witnesses, reasoning with them to keep their faith in Jehovah God whenever and wherever disasters occurred.
While commiserating with bereaved families who lost dear ones in the fiery deluge, the Christian Minister urged all to keep focus on God, and give thanks to God for the survivors.
“We the rest are alive, we can go on with life.
“We pray that we remain calm in the face of these hard times, because building and maintaining our relationship with Jehovah is the most important thing we can do.”
Mr Gbedemah announced that Jehovah’s Witnesses have in place an arrangement for assistance throughout the world where elders of local congregations make prompt responses to disasters.
“The good news is that these arrangements are working. It has worked in Dunkwa before the one in Accra. So in the case of the Accra floods, elders in the affected areas quickly got into contact with the local Witnesses and their neighbors to know the extent of damage. Right after that on Thursday, the Branch Office sent some brothers to the site to see what could be done immediately.
“We quickly arranged relief items, including blankets, towels, clothes, water, medicine and other things that would be needed.
“On Friday we sent representatives, and we supplied relief items again, and we arranged for medical professionals to take care of people affected around the Alajo and Adabraka areas, where both Witnesses and non- Witnesses were given medical attention. Included were diabetics and the other people on some special medication.”
Mr Gbedemah explained that the letters to the nearby congregations were to ask Brothers and Sisters to assist to ease the pains of the affected, and to make arrangement for volunteers to help with the reconstruction of affected homes.
“The interventions are both short and long-term,” the Minister said.
Torrential rains on Wednesday June 3, 2015, which ran into the late hours flooded parts of Accra, and later caused an explosion at the Goil Filling Station at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle.
The floods and the resulting inferno consumed neighbouring houses and claimed more than reported 150 persons, and destroying property worth huge fortunes. GNA
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