CRR Storm Fund

Catastrophic Storm in Central River Region

On June 14th, a fierce wind storm swept through The Gambia's Central River Region. Many homes' roofs were swept away, just before the rainy season begins.

And the thriving Dobang Kunda Lower Basic School was devastated. Damage was widespread, and the Gambian government's coffers are depleted from a nation-wide shutdown to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Dobang Kunda school has been a Peace Corps site for a number of years, since GambiaRising Board member Marnie Florin identified it as a potential site for Peace Corps, and Board member Maggie (Daniels) Okponobi worked with the community when she was posted there to convince the government to build a school. We have agreed to offer those who care, a way to contribute to the emergency repair of this school. Our Upcountry Coordinator, Kebba Sanyang will oversee the use of funds. If you want to spread your donations out over a period of months, you can sign up for monthly donations, and we will deploy the first six months of your promised donations immediately - before the rains that are expected to begin soon Please give what you can.

Dobang Kunda School: June, 2020

June, 2019

Lest we forget, that climate change is causing increasing havoc in the world's weather, here is our post about the June, 2019 wind storms in CRR:

On June18, 2019 a violent wind storm swept across The Gambia's Central River Region (CRR). No one had seen anything like it before. As people stood by helplessly, roofs were torn off schools and homes, brick walls were blown over, water towers blown down, and solar panels were ripped off roofs. CRR is a a rural part of The Gambia, many hours up country from the city. And while residents with connectivity posted or sent photos and reports online, most of the world took nearly no notice. The Region's Governor's office posted photos of a some food and supplies being delivered. People living only one region away report that they had not heard about it (unless they had friends and relatives living there).
After waiting for a coordinated response to emerge, we agreed to assist several schools in the Region by providing a way for people to help. There are many needs, but we will focus on funding school repairs before the rains come. A volunteer committee of local school administrators and teachers will coordinate distribution of funds.