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Citizen Power 2121 Murray Ave Pittsburgh, PA 15217 (412) 421-6072 (412) 421-6162 Fax info@citizenpower.com	CITIZEN POWER TSUNAMI RELIEF PROJECT On December 26, 2004 one of the worst disasters in human history struck Southeast Asia. A tsunami, triggered by an earthquake measuring 9.0 in the Indian Ocean, killed nearly 200,000 people in several countries and left 450,000 people homeless. A massive relief effort began slowly, but developed into the greatest relief effort ever undertaken. Within days, Citizen Power began raising funds to help tsunami victims. Citizen Power decided that large relief organizations were in the process of addressing the immediate, emergency needs of victims. Citizen Power wanted to help survivors get back to a normal life as soon as possible. We were particularly interested in enabling people affected by the tsunami to return to work. Citizen Power’s executive director, David Hughes, had visited India before the tsunami and was familiar with the area most affected by the disaster. The Citizen Power board of directors instructed the executive director to return to India and make an assessment of need. Mr. Hughes traveled to India in February 2005 and spent a few weeks investigating: the damage caused by the tsunami, what the Indian governments were doing about it, what non government organizations were doing about it, and what role Citizen Power could play.[Click here to see the Pittsburgh Post Gazette story] Interviews were conducted with Indian government officials, the Consular General and staff at the US Consulate in Chennai. In addition, with the crucial assistance of Mamallapuram resident A. Arumugam, who acted as interpreter, Mr. Hughes met with dozens of tsunami victims to determine how best to help them. Based on the executive director’s findings, Citizen Power decided to initiate a manageable project to help victims in the Mamallapuram area on the southeast coast of India. This included “adopting” the New Nemmali Kuppam (village). New Nemmali is a fishing village situated next to the beach about one hour south of Chennai, India, and 8 kilometers north of Mamallapuram . It is basically a fishing village, with 60 fishermen and their families. (New Nemmali photo taken before the tsunami) The families of New Nemmali lost everything in the tsunami, including their houses, clothes, savings, personal belongings and family heirlooms. The fishermen lost all their boats, motors and nets, equipment that had taken years to purchase. Fortunately, no one from New Nemmali died. The executive director’s investigation found that companies from Belgium and Germany planned to buy new boats for these fisherman. Citizen Power decided that it would buy a set of new nets for each boat. Once the new boats arrived, Citizen Power arranged to purchase 20 sets of nets at a cost of about $15,000. Each set contained five nets, each used for different kinds of fishing. The nets were delivered on May 14, 2005. (See photos). This was the critically needed last step that enabled the fishermen to return to their livelihood. As of March 2006, the families of New Nemmali are still waiting for permanent housing, but the temporary housing is satisfactory and the daily life in the village seems to have returned to something close to normal. With A. Arumugam’s invaluable service, Citizen Power continues to monitor the situation and provide assistance as needed. In May 2008, Citizen Power donated the balance of its Tsunami Relief Fund or $3,612.50 to Doctors Without Borders and directed that the funds be used to help victims of the Myanmar cyclone. Home \| Search \| Feedback \| Links

Citizen Power
2121 Murray Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 15217
(412) 421-6072
(412) 421-6162 Fax
info@citizenpower.com

CITIZEN POWER TSUNAMI RELIEF PROJECT

On December 26, 2004 one of the worst disasters in human history struck Southeast Asia. A tsunami, triggered by an earthquake measuring 9.0 in the Indian Ocean, killed nearly 200,000 people in several countries and left 450,000 people homeless.

A massive relief effort began slowly, but developed into the greatest relief effort ever undertaken. Within days, Citizen Power began raising funds to help tsunami victims. Citizen Power decided that large relief organizations were in the process of addressing the immediate, emergency needs of victims. Citizen Power wanted to help survivors get back to a normal life as soon as possible. We were particularly interested in enabling people affected by the tsunami to return to work.

Citizen Power’s executive director, David Hughes, had visited India before the tsunami and was familiar with the area most affected by the disaster. The Citizen Power board of directors instructed the executive director to return to India and make an assessment of need. Mr. Hughes traveled to India in February 2005 and spent a few weeks investigating: the damage caused by the tsunami, what the Indian governments were doing about it, what non government organizations were doing about it, and what role Citizen Power could play.[Click here to see the Pittsburgh Post Gazette story]

Interviews were conducted with Indian government officials, the Consular General and staff at the US Consulate in Chennai. In addition, with the crucial assistance of Mamallapuram resident A. Arumugam, who acted as interpreter, Mr. Hughes met with dozens of tsunami victims to determine how best to help them.

Based on the executive director’s findings, Citizen Power decided to initiate a manageable project to help victims in the Mamallapuram area on the southeast coast of India. This included “adopting” the New Nemmali Kuppam (village). New Nemmali is a fishing village situated next to the beach about one hour south of Chennai, India, and 8 kilometers north of Mamallapuram . It is basically a fishing village, with 60 fishermen and their families. (New Nemmali photo taken before the tsunami)

The families of New Nemmali lost everything in the tsunami, including their houses, clothes, savings, personal belongings and family heirlooms. The fishermen lost all their boats, motors and nets, equipment that had taken years to purchase. Fortunately, no one from New Nemmali died.

The executive director’s investigation found that companies from Belgium and Germany planned to buy new boats for these fisherman. Citizen Power decided that it would buy a set of new nets for each boat. Once the new boats arrived, Citizen Power arranged to purchase 20 sets of nets at a cost of about $15,000. Each set contained five nets, each used for different kinds of fishing.

The nets were delivered on May 14, 2005. (See photos). This was the critically needed last step that enabled the fishermen to return to their livelihood.

As of March 2006, the families of New Nemmali are still waiting for permanent housing, but the temporary housing is satisfactory and the daily life in the village seems to have returned to something close to normal. With A. Arumugam’s invaluable service, Citizen Power continues to monitor the situation and provide assistance as needed.

In May 2008, Citizen Power donated the balance of its Tsunami Relief Fund or $3,612.50 to Doctors Without Borders and directed that the funds be used to help victims of the Myanmar cyclone.

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