Various U.S. faith-based groups have come together to provide relief assistance on the ground in northwest Ecuador following the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that took the lives of more than 500 people.
Groups like Georgia-based MAP International recently joined World Vision, Plan International, Save the Children, UNICEF, CARE and Samaritan's Purse to help with rescue and relief, according to Religion News Service (RNS).
"We are responding in the name of Jesus Christ to help with emergency needs such as water, shelter and medical care," Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan's Purse, said in a statement.
He said Samaritan's Purse will open up a field hospital in the coming days.
North Carolina-based Samaritan's Purse has deployed a disaster assistance relief team to the quake zone and is also planning to dispatch an aircraft with supplies and key personnel, said Spokesman Scott Knuteson.
World Vision's national director in Ecuador, Jose Luis Ochoa said they are in the process of setting up child-friendly spaces where children and young people can access counsellors. "Right now, our primary concern is ensuring that the needs of children and their families are met."
The organisation said it is setting in motion plans to reach up to 10,000 people in the hardest-hit areas, including Manabi, Esmeraldas and Los Rios, with emergency relief items such as mattresses, mosquito nets, hygiene supplies, kitchen kits and water treatment systems, RNS reports.
Georgia-based MAP International, which provides medical supplies, is currently conducting an assessment of critical needs, said Maggy Martinez, MAP's Ecuador country leader, adding that in some instances entire towns or villages have been destroyed.
She said she is evaluating the type and amount of medical relief MAP will need to send and is working with other non-profit partners to coordinate those efforts.
Apart from the rescue and recovery work, Martinez said MAP is also going to provide shelters, relocation and ongoing health care with standardised, pre-packaged kits of medicines and medical supplies.
"These are called interagency emergency health kits and are designed to address the health needs of thousands of people displaced by a disaster for up to three months."
Protestant churches also held a meeting to create an earthquake emergency committee, according to RNS.
More than 500 people were killed and 2,560 injured in what was considered Latin America's most devastating quake in decades. The quake also destroyed more than 300 buildings, buckled overpasses and trapped drivers, NBC News reports, citing government sources.
The Attorney General's Office said majority of the dead have been identified and returned to their loved ones . At least 11 foreigners, including one American and two Canadians, were among those killed.
Rescue efforts are still ongoing to find missing people.
President Rafael Correa, meanwhile, said it could cost as much as $3 billion to rebuild — about 3 percent of Ecuador's gross domestic product.
The U.S. has reportedly offered assistance, but so far President Correa, a strong critic of U.S. foreign policy in Latin America, has yet to respond publicly.
