We have a dear friend (this old lady in the green shirt) who has become like family to us. One thing that's so difficult about living in Cambodia is seeing poverty and suffering everywhere. It's so hard to know what to do and how we can help. This woman lived through the Khmer Rouge, has had children die, her husband recently had a stroke which has left him disabled and she is now raising her 10 year old grandson. Now her house is full of water.
This is the road to her house. Most of Cambodia is basically a big delta for the Mekong River. The land is covered with water a large part of each year. Recently the government sold the land where a large lake sits in the northern part of Phnom Penh. This lake has been the main place for the water to go in Phnom Penh. A company has been filling in this lake to develop this land. As a result, Phnom Penh has been flooding in areas it never used to because the water doesn't have anywhere to go.
Our friend lives near this lake. Now all the water has been flooding into her neighborhood. She lives in some slums in the north of town. For over a month now her house has been filled with water. Some of her neighbors have had to move out because the water is so high in their house. The water is filled with trash, sewage and is a breeding ground for mosquitoes.
Hudson and JT went to see her house the other day. We're hoping that we might be able to help her raise her house so she doesn't have to live in water. It's not the rainy season yet, but in the next few months the rain will increase and the water will most likely rise.
Here are some pictures of her house:
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