Buckner's short-term trips to Honduras are currently on hold. (Buckner photo)
Honduras (MNN) ― Buckner International has put all short-term trips to Honduras on hold. They are being cancelled or redirected for safety reasons until the situation can be further evaluated.
The last of the Buckner teams was sent home from Honduras on Saturday. The Buckner base in Honduras is located in Tegucigalpa, the capital city, which is the center of unrest resulting from the coup that removed President Manuel Zelaya from office.
Because of their proximity to the Honduran capital, "We just feel like it's in the best interest of our volunteers to wait and see what happens," said Randy Daniels, vice president of International Operations at Buckner. "We're obviously sorry for any inconvenience this causes our groups, but our staff in Honduras believes this is the best decision for now."
At this point, Buckner cannot say when the trips will resume. They will await the staff there to assess the situation and report back to their U.S. offices. Currently there is a curfew being enforced for the 48 hours after the president was ousted, from 9 p.m. to 6 p.m. The government interrupted the electrical supply to the capital as well as the television and radio broadcasts.
The trips scheduled to Honduras for 2009 doubled the trips Buckner sent out last year. They have already completed nine trips with 10 more scheduled for the rest of the year. Nine of those trips were going to be working with orphanages in the San Pedro Sula area, while the last was to be in Tegucigalpa. Buckner's trips have grown with their ministry growth. They will be moving residents into their Girls' Transitional Living Home in San Pedro Sula at the end of July.
