(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis is praying for the victims of Colombia`s mudslide tragedy, grieving relatives and also for those involved in the ongoing rescue operation.James Blears reports, the eventual death toll is likely to exceed 300, with more than 400 injured.Listen: The City of Mocoa, in Colombia`s South Western Region of Putumayo, has been devastated by a sea of mud and rocks after torrential rain caused a river to burst its banks and mud to drown and suffocate many of its inhabitants. The Red Cross, Armed Forces and other specialist services, have been working around the clock since the disaster stuck on Saturday. Colombia`s President Juan Manuel Santos who`s visiting the stricken area has declared a State of Emergency. A massive airlift is underway, as electricity and water are down. Food, water, medicines and shelter are urgently needed as life savers and life preservers, for those who` ve lost everything including many ...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis is praying for the victims of Colombia`s mudslide tragedy, grieving relatives and also for those involved in the ongoing rescue operation.
James Blears reports, the eventual death toll is likely to exceed 300, with more than 400 injured.
Listen:
The City of Mocoa, in Colombia`s South Western Region of Putumayo, has been devastated by a sea of mud and rocks after torrential rain caused a river to burst its banks and mud to drown and suffocate many of its inhabitants.
The Red Cross, Armed Forces and other specialist services, have been working around the clock since the disaster stuck on Saturday.
Colombia`s President Juan Manuel Santos who`s visiting the stricken area has declared a State of Emergency. A massive airlift is underway, as electricity and water are down. Food, water, medicines and shelter are urgently needed as life savers and life preservers, for those who` ve lost everything including many loved ones, especially children.
The true scale and extent of the devastation can be seen from the air as whole swathes of cloying mud cover a wide panorama.
His Holiness, who`s been on a trip to Carpi, says he`s praying for the victims, those grieving for their loved ones, also giving thanks and encouragement to those valiantly involved in the rescue operation.
In an aerial view, the cargo ship Dali sits in the water after running into and collapsing the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, 2024, in Baltimore. / Credit: Tasos Katopodis/Getty ImagesACI Prensa Staff, May 5, 2024 / 14:00 pm (CNA).Bishop Brendan Cahill of Victoria, Texas, is inviting Catholics throughout the United States to join the May 22 "National Day of Prayer and Remembrance for Sailors and People of the Sea," which this year will include a special prayer in memory of those affected by the catastrophic March 26 Baltimore bridge collapse. "Each year, we pray for those who work on the high seas and the ports. In a special way this year, we remember those who have been impacted by the collapse of the Key Bridge, particularly the six construction workers who perished in the bridge collapse, and for their families as they mourn the loss of their loved ones," Cahill said.On March 26, the container ship Dali suffered a power failure and collided with one of the bridge...
The "Holy Fire" is passed from inside Christ's tomb to pilgrims gathered inside the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher in Jersusalem on May 4, 2024, for the annual Orthodox Christian ceremony, held on the day before Easter, according to the Julian calendar. / Credit: Marinella Bandini/CNAJerusalem, May 5, 2024 / 09:00 am (CNA).Pilgrims gathered in Jerusalem on Saturday for the annual "Holy Fire" ceremony at the revered site of Jesus' burial and resurrection, an ancient custom considered by many believers to be a miraculous event that takes place the day before the Orthodox Christian celebration of Easter.For safety reasons, attendance at the May 4 event was capped at 4,200 people inside the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, though the crowds were more manageable and somewhat subdued this year because of a lack of pilgrims from the Palestinian territories and abroad due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.Israeli police man a checkpoint inside the Old City of Jerusalem duri...
Pope Francis greets the crowd gathered at St. Peter's Square on May 5, 2024. / Credit: Vatican MediaVatican City, May 5, 2024 / 09:30 am (CNA).Pope Francis asked for a moment of silence as he spoke from the window of the Apostolic Palace on Sunday for people to thank the Lord for their friends. The pope reflected on the gift of friendship during his Regina Caeli address on May 5."Since childhood, we learn how beautiful this experience is: We offer friends our toys and the most beautiful gifts; then, growing up, as teenagers, we confide our first secrets to them; as young people we offer loyalty; as adults, we share satisfactions and worries; as seniors, the memories, considerations, and silences of long days," the 87-year-old pope said."The word of God, in the Book of Proverbs, tells us that 'Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel' (Prv 27:9). Let us think a moment of our friends and thank the Lord for them."S...