Joy FM has presented relief items valued at over GH¢ 5,000 to the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO). The items are meant to help alleviate the suffering of flood victims in the three northern regions. They included 21 bags of rice, bails of used clothing and a cheque of GH¢ 2, 600. Making the presentation, the Programmes Manager of Joy FM, Mr. Kofi Owusu said the donation formed part of the station’s contribution towards alleviating the precarious living conditions of the flood victims. He said the items were realised through appeals to the public by the station. Mr. Owusu expressed the hope that the donation would help the victims who were in dire need. Receiving the donation, the Deputy NADMO Co-ordinator in charge of Relief and Reconstruction, Alhaji Sulemana Yirimea expressed appreciation to the station for the items. He said the major challenge facing the people was hunger resulting from the destruction of their farmlands by the floods. The support, he noted, will help to reduce the food insecurity in some of the affected areas. The Deputy NADMO Coordinator appealed to the management of Joy FM and other media houses to appeal to the public to avoid disasters. “It is better to educate the people on the need to avoid low land areas especially now that the rains are about to set in, than wait and appeal for assistance for victims”, he advised. Alhaji Yirimea stressed the need for residents to refrain from acts such as throwing garbage into drains, saying that choked the water ways and resulted in floods. Touching on the reconstruction of the affected areas, Alhaji Yirimea said the government was liaising with the international community to rebuild the ruins. According to him, consultations were going on between the communities and the government as well as the international community on the design of the reconstruction. He indicated that the government had embarked on aggressive reconstruction of essential sectors such bridges and educational facilities that were affected by the torrential rains. Weeks of merciless downpour rendered many parts of the three northern regions completely submerged under water for weeks. The end result was a flattening of the mud houses and its concomitant lose of lives and property.javascript:openNewWindow('pix.asp', 'PhotoGallery','530','480'); Select Photo Some of the hard hit areas were the Builsa District, Kassina Nankana District and the Bawku Muncipality, all in the Upper East Region.