Malaysia
On December 16, 2022, around 3 am, a landslide buried a camping site at Batang Kali, a popular tourist destination, resulted in 31 deaths and eight hospitalizations. Volunteers from Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation (BTCF) from the Kuala Lumpur branch office mobilized immediately, arriving on site before 11 am the same morning to assess the disaster situation and provide emotional care to shocked and distraught survivors and family members.
As survivors and diseased were sent to different hospitals, volunteers were also dispatched to provide care for the injured and family members. The same evening, BTCF further set up a care center with snacks and drinks at Sungai Buloh Hospital, where the majority of family members were gathered, and started providing hot meals for survivors and hospital staff.
Tzu Chi Foundation Malaysia volunteer Tan Chee Wei said, “Some families are too distraught and do not know what to do. We accompany the families and try to guide them through the process to hopefully make it easier for them.”
Through December 20, volunteers continued comforting survivors and those who had lost family members, and accompanying family members in their agonizing wait to learn the fate of their loved ones, as well as providing hot meals. Volunteers also began providing cash relief to the injured and families in the amounts of 500 RM for lightly injured, 1000 RM for those requiring hospitalization, and 2000 RM to families of the diseased.
Alen Choo Wai Lun, who was himself injured in the landslide and whose wife was among the deceased expressed, “During the time when I was at the hospital, alone and not knowing the fate of my wife, the visits from Tzu Chi’s volunteers brought me peace and strength.”
After December 20, volunteers remain standing by to assist as the need for emotional and financial support arises. At the time of writing, BTCF has provided financial support to 37 affected individuals and families.
The Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation is a global non-profit humanitarian organization founded in 1966 by Buddhist nun Dharma Master Cheng Yen. Its missions of medicine, charity, education, and humanistic culture have brought relief to 128 countries. The heart of Tzu Chi is embedded in its name: in Chinese, “Tzu” means compassion and “Chi” relief, to relieve the suffering of those in need while creating a better world for all through compassion, love and hope. For more information, visit tzuchi.us.
For additional information and media inquiries, please write to Johan Alwall, Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation, johan.alwall@us.tzuchi.org.
Malaysia
Malaysia
Malaysia
Malaysia
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