A Sudanese man who now lives in York County will go to sleep in the safety of his Mount Wolf home. That’s not stopping him from worrying about the family he left behind as his homeland is on the verge of spiraling into a civil war. Phillip Deng’s body language showed how nervous he was now that fighting has broken out in South Sudan.
It’s a concern that is shared by more than 50,000 Sudanese who live in America. “They feel the pain because those are their loved ones there in South Sudan” said Deng. He hasn’t spoken to his sister since the middle of last month which is when the fighting between government forces and rebels broke out. “My hope is that they are still hiding somewhere near Bor and that they are still breathing” said Deng.
Bor is the area where Deng says the violence is the worst. “the killing of civilians quickly spread throughout the country like wild fire” said Deng. His mother and 2 brothers were right in the middle of the fighting. “My family managed to hide for over a week and then luckily they crossed the River Nile and went to the other side of the river” said Deng.
The United Nations says 2,500 Sudanese refugees make their way to a camp in Uganda everyday. On Wednesday his mother and brothers made it there safely. “In the beginning of February I will fly over to Uganda and visit them there. I’m hoping that by then I’m able to find where my sister is” said Deng.
Deng has set up a fund to help his family members with food, travel and other expenses. If you would like to donate visit www.gofundme.com or you can email him directly at awandit@juno.com.