No church members reported among dead; Adventist university damaged
The Seventh-day Adventist Church and the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) in Costa Rica continue to assess damage inflicted by a 6.1 magnitude earthquake that struck the northern part of the Central American country January 8.
Church leaders have not reported any deaths among members, but said they are still trying to account for all local members and assess damages as roads become more accessible to travel.
The earthquake, centered some 22 miles northwest of San Jose near the Poas Volcano National Park, left dozens missing and thousands without water, electricity and telephone service, local officials report.
“The situation is very distressing,” said Roberto Romero, ADRA Costa Rica director. “The earthquake hit a mountainous area with few inhabitants and homes, yet some 42 small communities disappeared completely—they are like ghost towns now.”
Reports indicate Adventists have lost their homes, said Marlon Moodie, executive secretary and communication director for the church in South Central American. The Adventist University in Alajuela sustained damage to its church, library, cafeteria and school of engineering building, he said.
The North Mission region of Costa Rica, which oversees more than 55 churches, was hardest hit, Moodie said.
As part of relief efforts, some 20 young Adventist medical cadets from San Jose offered medical attention the day after the earthquake, Romero said. Dozens of Adventist young people also volunteered with Costa Rica’s National Emergency Commission to assist in rescue and aid operations after the earthquake, he added.
ADRA Costa Rica continues to coordinate with local Adventist churches to collect food for distribution in government-designated disaster centers, Romero said.
ADRA also responded late last December to torrential rainfall along Costa Rica’s eastern coast, flooding in the province of Limn, destroying homes and isolating more than 100 communities. The organization provided emergency food baskets for more than 570 residents struggling to recover after the region’s worst rainfall in more than 60 years.
Nearly 60,000 Seventh-day Adventists worship in 173 churches in Costa Rica.
