A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo, near Lake Tanganyika and the Tanzanian border on Monday. The quake’s epicenter was about eight miles underground and greatly affected Kalemie, a lakeside town of Congo. Our partners in Congo have reported that 300 houses were destroyed and at least six people have been confirmed dead. The number of people injured and hospitalized is still unknown.

Episcopal Relief and Development is in contact with the Bishop of the Katanga Province and our partners in Kalemie. Currently, our partners are assessing damage. ERD stands ready to respond and provide emergency assistance as needs are identified.

Prior to the earthquake, the Great Lakes region has suffered from political and economic unrest in Congo, Burundi and Rwanda. Kalemie is home to tens of thousands of displaced people after civil war left nearly 4 million people dead, mostly due to strife-induced disease and hunger.

The affected area is no stranger to natural disasters. In 2002 the country was shaken by the eruption of Goma’s Nyiragongo volcano. The eruption forced an estimated 300,000 persons to evacuate and destroyed the homes of 120,000 people. It was reported about 100 people were killed.

Please pray for people affected by this disaster.

To make a donation and help people after disasters, please donate to the Africa Relief Fund in the "Ways to Give" section online at http://www.er-d.org/ or call 1-800-334-7626, ext. 5129. Checks can be mailed to: Episcopal Relief and Development, c/o Emergency Relief Fund, P.O. Box 12043, Newark, NJ, 07101.