When disaster strikes, it spares no one. But the most affected are the elderly as they are often physically frail, making it difficult to run to safety or even in accessing relief material where they often get sidelined by younger and fitter individuals. HelpAge works at rehabilitating these elderly, by not only providing them relief material but also by providing long term sustainability options.

HelpAge has over the years worked hard towards providing the elderly much needed relief during disasters such as the Kashmir & Gujarat earthquakes, Orissa floods, Mizoram famine, the 2004 Tsunami and most recently the Bihar floods.

The wrath of Water – Bihar Floods
The change in the course of River Kosi, changed the course of life in Bihar, with the breach of its embankment, it caused catastrophic damage, with villages being wiped out, huge loss of human lives, livestock, agricultural land & with many roads & railway tracks completely submerged. Life in Bihar came to a virtual standstill and the Govt. declared it a national calamity. It was a trying time for our relief workers as they worked day and night wading through knee deep water venturing into areas completely inaccessible by transport on foot, providing much needed relief to the victims.

A large number of elderly were reduced to begging. A rapid assessment of the situation was done in severely affected districts Saharsa & Supaul. Free medical camps, catering to the needs of the flood affected victims, were organized in Raghopur, Pratapganj and Basantpur blocks of Supaul district and Saharsa town of Saharsa district. 7114 families were distributed relief materials which included ration, clothing and shelter material which acted as temporary homes for the displaced.