Medications and supplies shipped this week included N95 respirator masks, emergency medical backpacks, and treatments for diabetes and skin inflammation.

Direct Relief Continues to Send Critical Medical Aid to Jamaica Following Hurricane Melissa

Hurricane Melissa, one of the strongest Atlantic storms ever recorded, continues to cause severe damage across the Caribbean, with Jamaica hit hardest by winds exceeding 180 miles per hour and widespread flooding. Health facilities in Jamaica, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic have sustained significant damage, complicating ongoing relief efforts.

Direct Relief has committed $250,000 in emergency funding and dispatched multiple shipments of aid to the region, including field medic packs, hygiene kits, and other requested aid to support thousands of patients in affected communities. Medicines and supplies Direct Relief had already positioned in the region, including hurricane preparedness packs and field medic packs, have been deployed to affected areas.

Today, additional pallets of critical medical supplies, valued at roughly $1 million, are being prepared for shipment to Jamaica’s Ministry of Health and Wellness from Direct Relief’s Santa Barbara warehouse. In the shipment are antibiotics, mental health medications, drugs and supplies for diabetes, oral rehydration solutions, water purification tablets, prenatal vitamins, safety vests, and protective equipment, among other requested aid. Direct Relief staff are now on the ground in Jamaica to assess needs and coordinate response activities with the Ministry of Health, PAHO, and local partners.

Operational Snapshot

UNITED STATES

Direct Relief delivered 516 shipments containing 427,855 doses of medication this past week to organizations, including the following:

AROUND THE WORLD

Globally, Direct Relief shipped over 2.7 million defined daily doses of medication, totaling 47,076 lbs., to countries including the following:

Year-to-Date

Since January 1, 2025, Direct Relief has delivered 24.6K shipments to 2,597 partner organizations in 54 U.S. states and territories and 87 countries. These shipments contained 275.5 million defined daily doses of medication, valued at $1.8 billion wholesale, totaling 3.5 million lbs.

IN THE NEWS

Santa Barbara’s Direct Relief Sends Aid to Hurricane Battered Caribbean – The Santa Barbara Independent

HEAT, CARNIVAL DONATE $1M TO DIRECT RELIEF IN SUPPORT OF HURRICANE RECOVERY EFFORTS | Miami Heat

Video Relief organization trying to reach Jamaica in wake of Hurricane Melissa – ABC News

How to help those impacted by Hurricane Melissa – NBC Boston

Direct Relief’s Ivonne Rodríguez on how to help Hurricane Melissa victims | KOA 850 AM & 94.1 FM | Colorado’s Morning News

11Alive News: The Take | Hurricane Melissa: A helping hand (10/30/25) | 11alive.com

Carnival donates $1m to Jamaica hurricane relief

Miami Heat and Carnival make $1M donation to Hurricane Melissa relief efforts | Miami | islandernews.com

Holland America Line Joins Hurricane Melissa Relief Efforts – Cruise Industry News | Cruise News

Heat, Carnival donate $1M to support hurricane recovery in Jamaica

Travel companies contribute to Hurricane Melissa relief efforts: Travel Weekly

Here’s how to help Hurricane Melissa victims

Local organization helping Hurricane Melissa response – KSTP.com 5 Eyewitness News

With Support From FedEx, Direct Relief Responds to Multiple Disasters

Carnival Makes Relief Donation to Jamaica Following Devastating Hurricane

How to help Hurricane Melissa victims

How To Help Those Impacted By Hurricane Melissa

Україна отримала понад $2 млрд підтримки від Direct Relief у сфері охорони здоров’я

The post A New Shipment to Jamaica Meets Post-Hurricane Needs, Part of Large-Scale Medical Aid Response appeared first on Direct Relief.

Medications and supplies shipped this week included treatments for chronic conditions, mental health, pain relief, and surgical care.

Responding to Floods In Alaska, Post-Typhoon

In response to major flooding in areas of western Alaska, Direct Relief has been shipping medical aid to the state this week to support evacuees and others impacted by the storms. Direct Relief provided field medic packs and personal care items for displaced people to the Alaska Native Heritage Center, or ANHC, located in Anchorage.

A part of a statewide coalition of organizations, ANHC is working to coordinate relief provisions to directly impacted individuals. The organization is coordinating material aid to areas of greatest need, providing financial assistance to displaced families, and coordinating transportation of supplies to Southwest Alaska. ANHC will also receive $50,000 to support emergency response costs.

Direct Relief has provided more than $5 million in medical and financial support to organizations across the state since 2008, and will continue to respond to needs arising from the recent floods.

Medical Deliveries Support Critical Health Services in South Sudan

Medical aid from Direct Relief is being used to provide health services in South Sudan via the non-profit, the MAMA Project. The group and other in-country partners distributed donated medicines and medical supplies to six primary health care units and Mother Teresa Hospital in Twic and Gogrial West counties of Warrap State. The deliveries, coordinated with local health authorities, restored essential care in communities that had gone months without medical supplies. 

The supplies enabled medical teams to resume treatment for a wide range of preventable and infectious diseases and respond to trauma and emergency cases. Additional donations, including surgical tools and emergency medical backpacks, strengthened clinical capacity at Mother Teresa Hospital, while personal care items distributed to women and girls helped address critical health and hygiene needs among displaced populations.

Local health workers reported sharp improvements in service delivery following the arrival of the medications, which filled significant gaps left by delayed public supply chains.  

Dr. Bith Kondok, an anesthetist at Mother Teresa Hospital, noted that gaps in medication supplies made the Direct Relief-supported deliveries “critical to sustaining lifesaving treatment” for people already living in South Sudan and displaced people arriving from other countries. 

Direct Relief remains committed to supporting frontline health services in Warrap State and expanding access to essential medicines in areas facing severe humanitarian strain. 

Emergency Medical Aid Delivered After Severe Flooding in Mexico

This past month, severe flooding triggered by Tropical Storms Priscilla, Raymond, and Gerry, combined with weeks of heavy monsoon rains, has devastated large areas of central Mexico. More than 200,000 people have been displaced, and many communities remain isolated due to collapsed bridges and landslides. With health services disrupted, local authorities report growing humanitarian needs, particularly among communities in temporary shelters and rural areas now difficult to reach by ground. 

In response, Direct Relief has mobilized emergency medical support to restore access to care, prioritizing treatment for respiratory infections, injuries, waterborne illnesses, and chronic disease disruptions such as diabetes and hypertension.  

To date, Direct Relief has delivered over $90,000 in medical aid, including essential medicines and field medic packs for triage and trauma care. Direct Relief has also provided $25,000 in emergency grant funding to strengthen local medical outreach and support partner response operations.

Additional assistance is underway in coordination with Mexico’s Secretariat of National Defense (SEDENA), the Guerrero Ministry of Health Urgent Care Unit, and Medical IMPACT as evolving health needs continue to emerge. 

Operational Snapshot

UNITED STATES

Direct Relief delivered 755 shipments containing 4 million doses of medication this past week to organizations, including the following:

AROUND THE WORLD

Globally, Direct Relief shipped over 24.8 million defined daily doses of medication, totaling 111,203 lbs., to countries including the following:

YEAR-TO-DATE

Since January 1, 2025, Direct Relief has delivered 23.5K shipments to 2,569 partner organizations in 54 U.S. states and territories and 86 countries. These shipments contained 266.2 million defined daily doses of medication, valued at $1.8 billion wholesale, totaling 3.4 million lbs.

IN THE NEWS

Direct Relief Mobilizes Ahead of Storm in Southern California | News Channel 3-12 

Mitski Surprise-Releases The Land: The Live Album | Pitchfork 

“La tormenta”, documental sobre la recuperación de Puerto Rico tras el huracán María, se presentará en el Lusca Film Fest – El Nuevo Día 

Anthem Awards Community Voice 

SEEHN Secretariat Meets with Direct Relief Representatives to Explore Regional Collaboration | SEEHN 

FedEx Helps Direct Relief Sustain Response to Landslides in Rural India 

The post Medical Support Departs for Alaska, Mexico Flood Response Efforts appeared first on Direct Relief.

Medications and supplies shipped this week included treatments for diabetes, rare diseases, autoimmune conditions, and bone health.

Direct Relief Supports Bali Flood Response with Emergency Funding

Severe flooding and landslides this week have left at least 19 people dead, hundreds displaced, and thousands more affected across six of Bali’s eight regions. Bali’s capital, Denpasar, was among the hardest hit as torrential rains flooded neighborhoods, damaged infrastructure, and set off landslides.

In response to the floods in Bali, Direct Relief has committed $12,000 in emergency funding to support its long-term partner, Bumi Sehat. Led by founder Robin Lim, Bumi Sehat is a respected maternal and child health organization that has supported mothers, children, and families while responding to disasters worldwide since 1995.

Direct Relief has partnered with Bumi through numerous crises since 2010. Bumi’s disaster response team has now been deployed in Bali and is providing essential medical and hygiene items to families affected by the floods. 

As relief efforts continue, Direct Relief remains in close contact with Bumi Sehat to ensure ongoing support as community needs evolve. 

Direct Relief Welcomes Community to Open House

This week, Direct Relief hosted an open house at the organization’s Santa Barbara, California,headquarters. Staff welcomed more than 300 community members for an inside look at how humanitarian aid is distributed globally. 

Visitors had the chance to explore Direct Relief’s humanitarian assistance programs, gain insight into the organization’s global impact through interactive presentations, and learn more about ongoing emergency response efforts. Guests also enjoyed self-guided tours through the state-of-the-art distribution center, where they saw emergency medical aid staged for deployment and met the team that helps power Direct Relief’s mission. 

Tropical Storm Nando Intensifies Over the Philippine Sea

Tropical Storm Nando (Ragasa) has formed over the Philippine Sea and is expected to strengthen quickly in the coming days, with forecasts warning it could reach super typhoon strength as it nears northern Luzon this weekend. Current projections show the storm bringing heavy rain, strong winds, and possible flooding to parts of the Philippines beginning September 20. 

Direct Relief will continue monitoring the storm and remains ready to support health organizations in the region should the storm pose a threat to communities and health systems. 

Operational Snapshot

UNITED STATES

Direct Relief delivered 800 shipments containing 1.3 million doses of medication this past week to organizations, including the following:

Around the World

Globally, Direct Relief shipped over 19.2 million defined daily doses of medication, totaling 122,464 lbs., to countries including the following:

YEAR-TO-DATE

Since January 1, 2025, Direct Relief has delivered 21.2K shipments to 2,457 partner organizations in 54 U.S. states and territories and 86 countries. These shipments included 210.6 million defined daily doses of medication, valued at $1.5 billion wholesale, totaling 3.1 million lbs.

In the News

Direct Relief Hosts Annual Open House in Santa Barbara – KEYT

Emergency Program to Support Nurses in Gaza and the West Bank – International Council of Nurses

Celebrating 10 Years with Direct Relief – Neighborhood Health Clinic

The post More than 20 Million Doses of Medication Dispatched, Bali Flood Response, and More appeared first on Direct Relief.

Hurricane Beryl, notable for being the strongest tropical storm ever to pass through the region so early in the Atlantic season, lashed the Windward Islands in the southeast Caribbean with winds up to 150 miles an hour.

Concern about Beryl began several days ago as the storm began to gather strength over the Atlantic Ocean. Although it briefly weakened Monday morning to Category 3, the storm is now considered a highly dangerous Category 4 hurricane. Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, and Tobago were under hurricane warnings, and Martinique, St. Lucia, and Trinidad were each issued a tropical storm warning.

Beryl is expected to produce forceful winds lasting throughout Monday, and heavy rainfall and storm surge — often even more dangerous than hurricane winds — will also cause significant impacts in the region.

Direct Relief Responds

In anticipation of meeting medical and health needs on the ground, Direct Relief has already reached out to partners across the region, including the Barbados Ministry of Health, the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the World Food Programme, and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency, along with a number of local partners.

The organization has active Memorandums of Understanding in place with OECS and PAHO, so that support can be provided quickly and efficiently in response to a disaster. In addition, an emergency shipment for St. Vincent is packed and staff are preparing it for dispatch.

A Direct Relief-funded team of emergency responders with close local ties, the Caribbean Rapid Response Team, is preparing for deployment.

And, in preparation for events like Hurricane Beryl, Direct Relief has already staged caches of commonly needed medications and supplies — called Hurricane Preparedness Packs — throughout this area of the Caribbean as well as the larger region. Regional stockpiles are ready in St. Lucia, Barbados, Puerto Rico, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Dominica.

But Luis David Rodriguez, a Direct Relief program manager specializing in the Caribbean and emergency response, said these preparations are only the beginning.

“It’s still too early to know, since Hurricane Beryl is just making landfall in parts of the Windward Islands,” he said. “We will have a better understanding of the impact and needs later in the day as the storm passes through.”

The post Direct Relief Responds as Hurricane Beryl Impacts the Caribbean. The Region, Watchful and Ready, Will Weather the Storm Today. appeared first on Direct Relief.

The post New Mexico Fires and Gulf Coast Flooding Highlight an Active Disaster Season  appeared first on Direct Relief.

A combination of existing relationships with disaster response agencies, safety net health clinics, and government agencies, as well as data analysis and pre-positioned supplies, have enabled Direct Relief to respond efficiently and precisely to requests after each incident.

For the latest news and response information, please read below:

TENNESSEE FLOODING

THE SITUATION

• A deluge of rainfall caused deadly flash floods in west Tennessee over the weekend.
• At least twenty-one people were killed as a result, and 40 remained missing as of Monday. Authorities reported that the majority of the fatalities were from the town of Waverly, located about 65 miles west of Nashville.
• Several counties were under emergency orders Monday, thousands in the region were without power and many connecting roads and bridges were destroyed or damaged.
• Several shelters in the area had also been activated for evacuees.

TENNESSEE FLOODING RESPONSE

• Direct Relief has been in communication with the Tennessee Primary Care Association, the Tennessee Red Cross, and the Tennessee Emergency Management Association to assess current medical needs and offer support.
• Offers are also being extended to health center partner facilities in the impacted areas and Direct Relief will respond as requested.

HAITI EARTHQUAKE

THE SITUATION

• A 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck Haiti on August 14 at 8:30 a.m. local time.
• The earthquake’s epicenter was 77 miles west of the capital Port-au-Prince, in the vicinity of Petit-Trou-de-Nippes.
• The death toll continues to climb, exceeding 2,000, with more than 12,000 injured, many in critical condition.
• Tropical Depression Grace, while less severe than feared, caused flooding in earthquake-affected communities including Jacmel, Les Cayes, and Marigot, further compounding the humanitarian situation.
• The flooding combined with a lack of shelter and access to clean water and sanitation drastically increases the risk of Covid-19, cholera, and other disease outbreaks.
• Initial rapid assessments indicate that the earthquake destroyed 61,000 homes and damaged another 76,000.
• The quake also affected 24 health facilities in the Sud, Nippes, and Grand’Anse departments, damaging the infrastructure of 20 while destroying four, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
• The widespread need for medical care in the aftermath of the earthquake and widespread damage to health infrastructure is making healthcare services and medical supplies a critical focus of the overall emergency response.
• According to OCHA, in the three hardest-hit areas, the health system has been severely impaired as health needs grow, making humanitarian interventions in health a critical priority to ensure access to life-saving care and other vital services.
• Ongoing insecurity in the country, including gang control of the main roads leading to the affected areas, further complicates the response. Aid is currently being transported through gang areas in convoys, though security issues remain a significant impediment.

HAITI EARTHQUAKE RESPONSE

• More than 192 pallets-worth of medical aid from Direct Relief totaling $12.8M has arrived recently in Haiti, is en route, or is ready for deployment.
• Direct Relief is mobilizing a FedEx humanitarian emergency MD-11 aid charter of urgently needed medical supplies to Haiti (ETA 1 p.m. on August 26). The flight will hold roughly 140 pallets of antibiotics, wound care items, PPE, diagnostic supplies, medical-grade freezers, IV fluids, medical relief packs, and essential medications.
• Inbound emergency shipments will be stored at Direct Relief’s Haiti warehouse and distributed by Direct Relief’s Port au Prince-based staff, enabling healthcare providers to continue providing life-saving services to their communities and patients from areas with damaged or destroyed health infrastructure.
• Health facilities being supported include St. Boniface, Saint Luke’s, Albert Schweitzer, & Saint Damien’s Hospitals, the Haitian Ministry of Health, Gheskio, CORE Haiti, Project Medishare, PAHO, and others.
• Six pallets containing emergency backpacks, tents, and hygiene kits will arrive early next week in Les Cayes by private charter to the Colorado Haiti Project in Petit-Trou-de-Nippes, located near the earthquake’s epicenter.
• Emergency medical supplies, which Direct Relief prepositioned at Saint Damien’s Hospital in Port au Prince, are now deployed to Les Cayes to support medical relief efforts.
• Critical medicine and supplies from Direct Relief were routed to Port au Prince this week by PAHO from its Panama UN Humanitarian Response Depot.
• This week, seven pallets of PPE, medical relief backpacks, and emergency shelters arrived at St. Boniface from Direct Relief’s Puerto Rico distribution hub. Direct Relief also provided $250,000 in emergency operational cash support to the St. Boniface Hospital in Fond-des-Blancs.

CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES

THE SITUATION

• The Dixie Fire is now the second-largest fire incident in California’s recorded history, having burned 730,600 acres in the Sierra Nevada mountain range in Butte, Plumas, Lassen, Tehama, and Shasta counties.
• It is the largest single fire in California history.
• Started on July 13, 2021, it is currently at 35% containment
• Winds of up to 40 miles per hour have hindered containment, even as 6,000 firefighters are assigned to the fire.
• More than 650 homes and 1,200 structures have been destroyed.
• More than 8,000 residents are currently evacuated.
• Four firefighters were injured battling the fire in early August after a tree fell on them.
• According to the National Interagency Fire Center, more than 440 fires are actively burning in the US, with major blazes concentrated in Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and California. More than 3.2 million acres have been burned this year.

CALIFORNIA FIRE RESPONSE

• Direct Relief sent an alert to more than 30 health centers, free clinics, and public health departments in Northern California to query if any would like to request aid.
• Direct Relief has committed an initial $1 million to help support safety net clinics and responders.
• Direct Relief has made the following materials available to partners in the impacted area: KN95 masks (1.3 million masks) and N95 masks (about 100,000 masks), 20 Wildfire Health Kits, insulin, oxygen concentrators (518 units), psychiatric/mental health medicines, hygiene kits, backpacks, inhalers, steroids, tetanus vaccine, personal care products.
• Direct Relief’s emergency-response activities also include synthesizing a broad range of public and private data sources to map and analyze wildfire risk, social vulnerability, and population movement in fire-affected areas.

NORTH CAROLINA FLOODING

THE SITUATION

• Tropical Storm Fred crossed through western North Carolina on Wednesday night, killing at least two people.
• Heavy rain caused severe flooding across many areas in the western part of the state.
• Twenty people are missing, leading to fears that the death toll could rise.
• Nearly 100 people needed rescue from historic flooding along the Pigeon River, which runs through the Appalachian Mountains, impacted several towns, including Cruso and Bethel, NC.
• Officials estimated that the damage had displaced about 500 families, and some lost their homes.
• Transportation throughout the area is challenging, with rockslides and flooding impacting roads, and around ten bridges have been damaged or destroyed.

NORTH CAROLINA FLOODING RESPONSE

• Direct Relief is in communication with the North Carolina Primary Care Association and is fulfilling requests for assistance.
• Five Direct Relief Hurricane Preparedness Packs are pre-positioned in coastal North Carolina.
• Direct Relief will maintain contact with health facilities in the impacted area and assist as needed.

TROPICAL STORM HENRI

THE SITUATION

• New England is bracing for its first hurricane landfall in 30 years this weekend as Tropical Storm Henri is expected to increase to hurricane strength before making landfall on Sunday or Monday somewhere in Southern New England.
• The last hurricane to make landfall in New England was Hurricane Bob as a category-two hurricane in 1991.
• Hurricane and storm surge watches are already in place for most of Long Island and southern New England, from New Haven, Conn. to Sagamore Beach, Mass. (including Block Island, Martha’s Vineyard, and Nantucket).
• Dangerous storm surge conditions are possible beginning Sunday for the region, with flash, urban, and river flooding forecasts through Monday.
• Strong winds, heavy rain, and a storm surge of up to 5 feet above ground level are expected in southern New England, western Long Island and Cape Cod.
• The timing of landfall is also expected to coincide with an astronomical high tide increasing the likelihood of significant storm surge, coastal flooding and erosion.
• The funnel-like geography of Narragansett Bay, R.I., and Buzzards Bay, Mass., could also exacerbate the storm surge impact in these areas.
• Previous storms to hit the Northeast in recent years, including Sandy, Irene, and Lee, were tropical storm strength (or lower) when making landfall in the northeast, but all did considerable damage to coastal communities and resulted in significant damage to communities as far inland as Vermont and Upstate New York.

HENRI RESPONSE

• Direct Relief is monitoring the track and intensity of this hurricane as it approaches the Northeastern United States.
• Direct Relief is in communication with several healthcare providers in New York and New England to support if needed as the hurricane makes landfall and moves inland.

The post Direct Relief Emergency Situation Report (8.23.2021) appeared first on Direct Relief.

Although flooding was widespread, the worst impacts were felt on the west and southwest portions of the island, said Direct Relief staff member Luis David Rodriguez.

Puerto Rico, still badly affected by 2017’s Hurricane Maria, has been dealing with a series of earthquakes that have roiled the island since late December of last year. Seismic activity has also been concentrated in the southern part of the island.

And more recently, Puerto Rico has been confronting a drought that has compromised running water access to many, along with a recent spike in Covid-19 cases.

Right now, “a lot of the rivers are overflowing,” Rodriguez said. “Two weeks ago, we were in a drought, and now we have to open the dams.”

An official with the Puerto Rico Electrical Power Authority told the news outlet Primera Hora that nearly 450,000 customers were left without electricity in various parts of the island.

Some health centers throughout Puerto Rico lost power, and some closed their doors due to widespread concerns about the extreme levels of flooding, Rodriguez said.

Still, “other than the loss of power, I think most of them were pretty prepared,” he said, naming a generator and PPE among requests from health centers on the island.

Direct Relief is stationing 14 hurricane prep packs on the island this week and next to be ready for future storms, but Rodriguez explained that Isaias had appeared particularly early. “This is super weird,” he said.

Isaias is a vast storm system with tropical-storm-force winds extending more than 300 miles from its center, USA Today reported. From Puerto Rico, it has made landfall in the Dominican Republic and may gain strength as it moves toward Florida.

In an advisory, the National Hurricane Center announced “a risk of impacts from winds, heavy rainfall, and storm surge along portions of the U.S. east coast beginning this weekend in Florida and spreading northward to the Carolinas and southern mid-Atlantic states early next week.”

However, the center said, it is too soon to determine the path or magnitude of the storm when it reaches the mainland.

Direct Relief has been in contact with partners in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and is working to meet requests from Puerto Rican health care providers. The organization will continue to monitor the situation and respond as needed.

The post Tropical Storm Isaias Unleashes Widespread Flooding in Puerto Rico appeared first on Direct Relief.

Approximately 20 tropical storms enter the Philippines annually. At least six out of 20 are expected to make landfall, pummeling communities specifically in the east and in northern Luzon.

But for some, the rainy season is a sign of hope, not of warning.

Good handwashing practices, promoted by the World Health Organization and the Philippine Department of Health, are key to fighting the spread of Covid-19.

But what if there is no water? How can you keep your hands clean when you turn on the tap and nothing flows?

Water shortage is not a new problem in the Philippines. In 2019, the WHO reported that at least one out of 10 people in the country still do not have access to high-quality water sources.

During summer, and especially when an El Niño is occurring, it is almost impossible to bathe daily. It’s almost expected that water won’t flow during the day. Many urban households wake up in the middle of the night, when running water is available, to store it in drums and pails.

But there are also nights when nothing really flows.

When not even a drop comes out of the faucet, that means no bathing, no dishwashing, no laundry – perhaps even no cooking. Daily needs will need to be met elsewhere.

The villages of Pilig Alto and Pilig Abajo, in the landlocked municipality of Cabagan on the island of Luzon, don’t have easy access to water. Residents have to fetch water for daily use from distant sources, whether riverbanks or other communities with a more reliable water supply.

When the low-lying villages are flooded, their potable water is contaminated. And when the weather is dry, there’s little to be had.

Direct Relief is helping to augment the water supply for these communities by providing communal water pumps – part of an ongoing effort to improve health in the Philippines. The aid was made possible through the work of the FLDP GeEx Community Development Foundation, an NGO focused on serving poor communities in northern Luzon.

Each water station will benefit at least 30 families.

The pumps are designed to be operated by hand – a necessity in areas where clean water is available but electricity is an unavailable or unaffordable commodity.

In Pilig Alto and Pilig Abajo, the pumps are busy from 5:00 or 6:00 am, as people prepare for their daily activities. Weekends bring a stream of people, as families do their laundry and household cleaning.

Cabagan is part of the larger province of Isabela, where food security is frequently a problem. A training and livelihood center in the province’s city of Ilagan aims to change that, teaching community members to earn livelihoods in agriculture or handicrafts.

Now, a 1.5-horsepower water pump will power the center and provide local communities with water for their daily needs.

“It isn’t only health that Covid-19 threatens. For over three months now, food security is becoming an even more pressing issue,” said Camille Marasigan, of the FLDP GeEx Development Community Foundation. “We are hoping that the livelihood facility will successfully generate farm produce and enable us to increase potential sources of food resources.”

And as the country continues to battle the pandemic, residents of communities who have received a water pump will be reliably able to wash their hands.

Direct Relief has provided more than $40 million in medical aid to the Philippines since 2010. Recently, to bolster the country’s Covid-19 response, the organization provided ventilators and oxygen concentrators, along with a $57,000 emergency grant. 

Through its strong partnership with the ASEAN Coordinating Center for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management, Direct Relief has also sent a range of disaster preparedness supplies to the ASEAN stockpile in Manila. 

The post In the Philippines, New Water Sources Bring New Opportunities appeared first on Direct Relief.

Here are some of the stories you might have missed about these heroes around the world, plus a few extra stories about gamers, climbers, and world-class athletes who contributed as well.

Remembering Maria, Puerto Ricans Jump into Bahamas Response

Hurricane Dorian was one of the most powerful Atlantic Ocean hurricanes ever recorded, with maximum sustained winds over 185 miles per hour. It took over 70 lives and did catastrophic damage to Grand Bahama and the Abaco Islands. Puerto Ricans could relate — they went through their own disaster with Hurricane Maria in 2017. Led by a pediatric oncologist, a group went, street by street, through the island’s villages, treating people too unwell or immobile to travel to one of the clinics.

Read more.

In the Heart of Appalachia, One Group Works Overtime to Reduce Overdoses

The opioid crisis in the United States continues to take tens of thousands of lives per year. In Virginia, a small band of locals have taken the initiative to help reverse overdoses and prevent deaths.

Read more.

On the Frontlines of Samoa’s Measles Epidemic

Measles, once thought to be well under control, has reemerged as a public heath threat around the world, due in part to lower vaccination rates. One pediatrician traveled from Hawaii to help health officials vaccinate against the disease.

Read more.

Cyclone Idai Destroyed Their Hospital. These Two Doctors Never Stopped Treating Patients.

Cyclone Idai was a historic tropical cyclone that took more than 1,300 lives in southeast Africa. These two 27-year-old doctors went back to work the day after it hit their hometown of Beira, Mozambique, and never stopped serving their community.

Read more.

Fistula is Devastating. This Doctor Is Working to End It.

Obstetric fistula is a particularly awful birth complication that often results in the death of the baby and lingering, alienating health issues for the mother. Bangladesh is trying to prevent all cases by 2030, and this doctor is doing all he can to help the cause.

Read more.

His Patients Fled Violent Conflict to Uganda. He Followed Them.

The global refugee crisis continued during 2019. In South Sudan, one doctor followed his patients after they fled to Uganda.

Read more.

After the Camp Fire, Paradise Residents Got Sicker. So Local Nurses Founded a Clinic.

Last year’s Camp Fire in Paradise, California, was the most destructive wildfire in the state’s history, killing 85 people and doing more than $16 billion in damage to property. Since that time, a family of nurses came together to start a nonprofit so they could better help those left behind by recovery efforts.

Read more.

A Year of Disasters Brings Another Year of Response

If you’ve ever wondered what’s it’s like to be humanitarian worker in a disaster zone, you can hear about it firsthand in this podcast segment.

Listen here.

And some stories you might have missed about climbers, gamers, and big time athletes who are all doing good in their own ways:

One of them was even willing to climb the highest peak (literally) to support Direct Relief’s mission of delivering essential medical aid to vulnerable people around the world.

Read more.

From Tornadoes to Hurricanes, Gamers Rush to the Rescue

Esports and video games make up the fastest-growing entertainment sector in the U.S. Gamers are also rising as a philanthropic community. This year alone, over 6,000 of them donated to Direct Relief for a total, as of December 19, of $1 million.

Read more.

Carlos Delgado, Major League Legend, Steps Up to Bat for Puerto Rico’s Kids

And finally, some community service insights from former MLB star Carlos Delgado, who was working to ensure pediatric patients have access to health care.

Read more.

The post ICYMI: Good Things Happened in 2019 appeared first on Direct Relief.

Since the storm made landfall, more than 1,000 rescues and evacuations have taken place, according to Harris County officials. That county, and surrounding areas, were ravaged by Hurricane Harvey in 2017, which resulted in 68 direct deaths and about 35 indirect deaths, according to a 2018 NOAA report. The storm also caused $125 billion in damage.

Local healthcare systems faced unprecedented challenges during and after Harvey, which a 2018 Texas Hospital Association said led to $460 million in damages for hospitals, which saw acute breakdowns in their ability to care for patients due to lack of supplies, medications, and security staff.

Operating on far smaller budgets and caring for more vulnerable populations, the region’s community health centers faced a unique set of problems in the wake of that storm, the lessons from which are now being applied.

“During Harvey, we recognized that we are not the rescue crowd,” said Dena Hughes, CEO of TAN Healthcare, located in Beaumont. “You want to know your lane, so that you don’t send people all over the place for replacement medications. We know who’s supposed to pick up supplies,” she said.

As with many healthcare facilities, shortages occurred because of logistics failures. “If food can’t get in, neither can medications,” Hughes said. But TAN also faced the issue of having to care for a more immobile patient population, both because of physician limitations and because many did not have access to a car.

With this storm system, Hughes said that her organization is focused on being available to treat as many patients as possible once the flood waters subside and roads re-open. Currently, I-10 the main artery connecting Houston with Beaumont, is closed and widespread flooding has impacted the area.

Hughes said her team is monitoring the situation via a communications group that they activated, as well as news reports and social media. She said that the Cajun Navy,  a volunteer group of private citizens with boats, was out rescuing people and that military vehicles were riding up and down streets in town.

Despite being able to apply past learnings, Hughes said that Imelda is coming at a time when the rebuilding process from Harvey is far from complete.

“Areas heavily hit by Harvey are halfway completed [with rebuilding], they’re experiencing new floods there. What was just fixed could be ruined and what was half-fixed is back to the starting blocks again,” she said.

Hughes said her group did not push out warnings or guidance to their patients, due to concerns about storm fatigue.

“We don’t always want to make it a fear factor. Every storm can’t be ‘The Storm’,” she said.

Issues surrounding mental health are one of the top two concerns that TAN, which has two facilities and several mobile clinics, is focused on, both for their staff and patients. having been through the trauma of Harvey.

“Even for me, it’s a little heavy. You know what you’re about to have to endure dealing with insurance, or not having insurance, and loss. That’s a huge part of the healthcare dance, making sure people do take care of themselves, so they can maintain the energy they need to deal with what they have to deal with, like where are you going to sleep and eat,” she said.

And for TAN patients, dealing with these issues can be even more burdensome.

“Income levels may not allow for immediate rebound, it may take some time to get all the dollars needed to repair and fix, it becomes a more elongated process and then you have things that are about to happen, like they haven’t been to the doctor.”

“Whatever was impacting you before may have gotten worse,” she said.

Direct Relief has sent an offer of assistance to 11 partners and has pre-positioned eight Hurricane Preparedness Packs in the affected region. Each pack is filled with essential medicines commonly requested in the days after a disaster.

In order to help officials and health care providers best position their resources, Direct Relief has also shared the latest Facebook Disaster map analysis with the Texas Association of Community Health Centers and with the Harris County Emergency Operations Center. This map shows Facebook app user movement by comparing the number of active users (who have opted-in to location history tracking) in an area compared to a baseline figure from three months prior.

Hughes said she feels confident in her group’s ability to respond to the storm’s aftermath.

“We stay on the ready,” she said.

Additional reporting contributed by Cydney Justman.

The post Waters Rise in East Texas as Tropical Storm Imelda Drenches Communities appeared first on Direct Relief.

Maria cut a dramatic path through the Caribbean, ripping roofs of buildings, rendering roads unusable, and leaving much of Puerto Rico without power.

“The experience of Maria has been a great lesson for everyone,” said Wanda Vázquez, Puerto Rico’s new governor, late Monday as she declared a state of emergency caused by incoming Tropical Storm Dorian.

A hard-learned lesson at that. Maria itself killed dozens; its aftermath deprived people of access to medical care and the electricity needed to power lifesaving machines. It’s estimated that nearly 3,000 people died as a result of the hurricane.

And while there would have been extensive damage in any case, virtually no one was prepared for the scale of Maria’s impact. Infrastructure was so destroyed that responders couldn’t reach isolated communities. Food and water distribution were spotty. Lacking electricity or depending on unreliable backup power, hospitals struggled to provide care.

Dorian, which continues to gain strength as it makes its way toward Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, probably won’t reach hurricane levels. Nonetheless, the storm will bring copious rain and strong winds, testing Puerto Rico’s resolve, its still-weakened infrastructure, and the lessons it’s learned from the past.

From the island’s Department of Health to its community clinics, people are gearing up to meet whatever challenges Tropical Storm Dorian brings.

“The memories of Hurricane Maria are still present in the population of Puerto Rico,” said Jessica Cabrera, preparedness and response director for the island’s Office of Public Health in a written interview. “People are being cautious and preparing for the event.”

Puerto Rico’s Department of Health has activated its preparedness plans and is sending out alerts and instructions to hospitals, dialysis centers, and emergency management staff.

In addition, they’re working to make sure that vulnerable populations aren’t being left behind. The department “urged the community, specifically oxygen dependent patients, insulin patients, pregnant women, immobile or bedridden patients, others who use routine medications, dialysis patients and cardiac, asthmatic and HIV patients, among other conditions, to prepare for the approaching phenomenon,” Cabrera said.

Dolores Morales is the director of the Migrant Health Center, an 11-clinic system in Puerto Rico. “We had areas where the patients couldn’t get to us and we couldn’t get to them either because of the vehicles we had” in the days after Maria, she said. “Our staff was chopping wood and moving trees out of the way, and still we couldn’t get through.”

Not this time, Morales said. Like health centers, government agencies, and nonprofit groups across the island, the Migrant Health Center has a plan.

The health center has acquired three mobile units – one funded by Direct Relief – that will allow medical staff to bring help wherever it’s most needed. A newly-obtained fleet of Jeeps will distribute medicine, food, and water – and bring people who need medical care to a working facility.

Each clinic has some solar panels. In a few cases, the solar power can light up a clinic in the event of an outage. In others, there’s just enough to keep vaccines and other temperature-sensitive medications safe in refrigerators.

In addition, the health center is preparing to deal with the longer-term effects of a major storm, which include homelessness and mental health issues.

Angela Sousa, information manager for the NGO NetHope, was fresh out of a meeting with the Puerto Rico Emergency Management Agency. She explained that NetHope was pulling together a list of available NGOs and the resources they had readily available.

“If we have the information before the emergency, we can better understand our capacity,” Sousa said.

During Hurricane Maria, NetHope worked to get communications up and running despite the island’s damaged infrastructure. Sousa said communication networks are a vital part of disaster response, allowing people to request resources and keep on top of what’s happening.

“In part, it’s important for their mental health,” she said. “Everyone wants to know or needs to know about their family or friends.”

Sousa said both government agencies and the private sector seemed more prepared than they had been before Maria. So did individuals and families. Sousa has seen people stocking up on food, water, gasoline, and medicine over the last few days, and noticed people getting their documents in order.

Morales shared that sense of optimism. “I feel very confident that we’ll be able to provide services and respond right away,” she said. “We’re much more prepared than we were when Hurricane Maria hit us.”

The post With Maria in Mind, Puerto Rico Gears Up for Hurricane Dorian appeared first on Direct Relief.

Nurtured by warm waters in the Atlantic Ocean, Dorian is gaining strength as it cuts a northwestern path, with winds threatening to reach 74 miles per hour by Monday evening. If dry air and wind shear fail to curb the storm, it is likely to become a category one hurricane.

Dorian is compressed in size – the radius of its strongest winds is about 45 miles – but not in potential force. Even before reaching full strength, it is likely to deluge the islands in its path with heavy rainfall – up to 10 inches in some locations.

While the storm will lose strength by the end of the week, if not earlier – the result, in part, of interacting with rough terrain of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic – its remains could reach the southeast of the U.S. mainland.

Islands throughout the Caribbean declared tropical storm warnings or watches during the weekend and on Monday. Crowds of people hurried to collect supplies before the arrival of wind and rain.

For Puerto Rico, the threat of a new, potentially destructive storm is particularly unwelcome. The U.S. territory still lives in the shadow of Hurricane Maria, which decimated the island in 2017, left some people without power for nearly a year, and caused the deaths of thousands. It’s rare that a conversation with one of the island’s residents makes no mention of the ruinous storm.

Another strong storm could shatter Puerto Rico’s fragile equilibrium and upend its delicate recovery process.

For the island of Dominica, too, Maria was devastating. Slammed full-force by the category five hurricane, the nation of roughly 70,000 lost the majority of its buildings, and its infrastructure was heavily damaged. It’s not clear how many ultimately died as a result of the storm.

Although the whipping winds of a hurricane making landfall can inflict immediate damage – it’s actually the accompanying water that causes the vast majority of a hurricane’s deaths.

In addition, a study in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed thousands of deaths occurred in the months after Hurricane Maria made landfall, roughly one-third of which were caused by lack of access to medical care.

To prevent similar deaths, Direct Relief has stationed Hurricane Preparation Packs throughout the Caribbean, from Jamaica to Grenada. The packs, which contain everything from first-aid supplies to vital medications for chronic diseases and allergic reactions, were developed with experts to save lives during and after a hurricane or similar event.

To track the hurricane and check the locations of pre-positioned modules, see the map below.

Direct Relief has worked to insulate Puerto Rico against future devastation by providing solar generators, medical refrigerators, satellite phones, and off-road-capable medical response vehicles to health centers throughout the island.

Direct Relief also works closely with the intergovernmental Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency and the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States.

The organization’s status as a non-state actor and supplier of medical commodities to the Pan American Health Organization (the World Health Organization’s arm in the Americas) allows it to quickly and strategically distribute pivotal medications and supplies throughout the region in the event of an emergency.

Direct Relief has extended offers of aid to partner organizations throughout the region and will continue to monitor the storm as it progresses.

The post Hurricane Dorian Rakes Treacherous Path through the Caribbean appeared first on Direct Relief.

Despite the change in classification, Barry remains a threat.

Its slow speed (6 mph) and elongated shape could mean the most torrential rains are still to come, with up to 25 inches of rainfall expected in certain areas.

As of Saturday afternoon, more than 100,000 people in Louisiana were without power, and voluntary evacuation advisories were in effect across the state.

Mass evacuations, impassable roads, store closures, and other storm-related disruptions place a disproportionate risk on people with chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, asthma, and hypertension. If people with such conditions are unable to access the medication and care they depend on, their chronic illness can quickly escalate into an acute crisis.

During emergencies, these people often turn to community health centers and clinics for care.

In Louisiana, the 37 health centers and clinics Direct Relief supports serve a combined 289,664 patients, 132,335 of whom lack insurance.

To ensure health facilities can respond immediately to their patients’ needs during emergencies, Direct Relief pre-positions large modules of essential medicines and medical supplies throughout Louisiana and other states at the start of hurricane season.

Direct Relief first developed the pre-positioning initiative following its extensive responses to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 and its subsequent work with the Texas Blue Ribbon Commission on Emergency Preparedness and Response.

By staging supplies in strategic locations in advance of a storm, health centers and clinics already have access to the resources they need to care for a surge in patients, including antibiotics, insulin, pain relievers, inhalers, first-aid supplies, and prescriptions for behavioral health conditions.

Direct Relief has deployed additional emergency medical aid to Houston. From there, based on the evolving situation,supplies can be routed to areas of high need.

The post Barry Hits as Hurricane, Lashes Louisiana appeared first on Direct Relief.

Data from early Friday morning shows a “dramatic drop” in population in  relatively well-off New Orleans neighborhoods including Uptown, Downtown, Mid-City and the French Quarter, while residents of the Lower Ninth Ward and neighboring areas are still largely in place, said Andrew Schroeder, Direct Relief’s director of research and analysis.

The analysis is based on Facebook-provided data and using Esri GIS tools. Direct Relief is one of a small handful of groups with access to anonymized Facebook data showing population movements during natural disasters.

Schroeder’s analysis found 40,519 active Facebook users in Uptown early Friday morning (12:01 a.m. on 7/12), down 6% from a three-month rolling average of 43,132 users. In contrast, the Lower Ninth Ward and neighboring areas saw a 4% increase, with 8,154 active Facebook users Friday morning vs. a rolling average of 7,816 users.

Facebook shared the map and analysis directly with the Louisiana Governor’s Office of Homeland Security &  Emergency Management to help in their preparations.

“New Orleans has a history of some neighborhoods being more vulnerable than others,” Schroeder said. “If we can see the difference between how people are getting out of harm’s way in these neighborhoods, we can be more responsive to their needs.”

Using the data maps, in concert with information from past storms, disaster response teams can predict where to send aid deliveries, both before and after the storm.

Direct Relief has eight Hurricane Prep Packs already in place within the current cone of the storm, each of which are designed to treat 500 people.

“When disasters hit, people will go towards a place like a shelter or hospital. If you can predict that, you can target aid accordingly, as opposed to waiting to find out where people fled to,” said Daniel Hovey, a disaster response specialist at Direct Relief.

In a New Orleans devastated by Hurricane Katrina, the Lower Ninth Ward suffered the most damage. In all, 70% of New Orleans’ occupied housing was damaged in the storm, and the city lost more than half its population.

The Army Corps of Engineers says problems with the levee system have been rectified. A spokesman reported to the Times-Picayune that the levees are 20 to 21 feet high. The predicted water levels this weekend are expected to be lower and the Corps is not concerned about a levee structural failure, according to that same report.

Nevertheless, the Lower Ninth Ward, New Orleans and southeast Louisiana are all at risk for serious flooding when Barry hits. Forecasters expect up to 20 inches of rain to drench coastal Louisiana by Sunday, accompanied by storm surges and falling on a Mississippi River that is already 16 feet above sea level, compared to three feet above flood stage when Katrina hit.

These conditions place the area at a “major risk for widespread flooding and flash flooding,” said Dr. James Belanger, senior meteorological scientist for The Weather Company, part of IBM.

“This is a big deal as it emphasizes the extreme and potentially catastrophic nature of flooding that will likely occur due to the heavy rainfall and flood-primed, antecedent conditions in the region,” he said.

One reason people might not have left the Lower Ninth Ward is that conditions are already making travel difficult—which has also impacted access to critical medical services. Baptist Community Health Services was forced to temporarily close its four New Orleans sites at 1:00 p.m. Wednesday afternoon after three-fourths of its staff were unable to navigate flooded streets.

“Several were stranded for about six hours in the city as their cars took on water,” CEO of Baptist Community Health Services CEO Shawn Powers told Direct Relief. It was “a real mess.”

By Thursday morning they were back restocking medical supplies in anticipation of worse to come. Powers said his team is doing all they can to prepare, including having  three of their medical students deliver relief supplies to clinics ahead of the weekend.

As such preparations continue for those who stay, Belanger recommended an evacuation. “Residents in these areas need to take the flooding  risk very seriously and should begin taking action to evacuate  the regions that are the  most flood prone,” he said.

The post As Storm Threatens New Orleans, Lower Ninth Ward Residents Stay Put appeared first on Direct Relief.

If Barry becomes a Category 1 hurricane, as anticipated, hundreds of people will need the help of health centers and clinics. Medical professionals will have to meet a wide range of needs, from providing wound care to replacing lifesaving medications that were damaged or left behind.

Local heroes

The fact that health centers rise up to do this kind of work in the midst and aftermath of a severe storm is remarkable. After all, they’re not exempt from the storm’s effects. Clinics are often flooded or lose power; staff members are stranded or unable to navigate the streets; and vital medical supplies can be damaged.

“We feel that as community health officials, we are a first responder team, and we’re held to a higher standard to take care of patients during a time of crisis,” said Chenier Reynolds-Montz, director of outreach and development at Access Health Louisiana.

One of Access Health Louisiana’s 16 locations had already experienced flooding during Wednesday’s deluge. The roof of a parking lot next door to another had caved in.  “Those people [in New Orleans] are just coming out from underneath that today or tomorrow, and then Tropical Storm Barry is supposed to hit,” said Peggy Barrios, a nurse care manager at Access Health Louisiana.

Shawn Powers, CEO of Baptist Community Health Services, said that, while they had experienced only water on the floor at one location, several staff members had been stranded or their cars damaged by the flooding. “This storm wasn’t forecasted,” he explained. “It caught everyone off guard.”

Preparing for the storm

Nonetheless, Baptist Community Health Services’ staff members were sorting medications for the storm and preparing “provider go bags” that doctors will keep with them during the next several days, so they can respond during emergencies.

Access Health Louisiana’s staff have been checking in with patients who manage chronic conditions with medication or who have mental health needs. For patients without reliable transportation, the health center will even deliver medications. “Sometimes they’ll stop by the food bank on the way,” said Reynolds-Montz.

Although lives seem most dramatically at risk during the storm itself, a lack of access to medication, reliable transportation, or necessary supplies after the fact can be even more dangerous. Experts attribute thousands of deaths to the impacts of Hurricane Maria, including the disruption of medical services.

Powers said that, as a primary care provider serving at-risk populations, Baptist Community Health Services is most concerned about patients with chronic conditions who may not have access to a steady supply of medication.

During an emergency – at precisely the moment when health centers and clinics are most likely to be overwhelmed by patients – it’s often impossible to get medical supplies where they’re most needed. Without the right tools on hand, doctors and nurses can’t effectively treat patients when they’re most vulnerable. Manageable injuries and chronic conditions can become life-threatening conditions.

For that reason, it’s essential to have supplies and medications safely stored long before a storm ever hits.

Tools in place

Because the Gulf Coast is prone to tropical storms, hurricanes, and flooding, Direct Relief has stationed Hurricane Prep Packs – specially designed modules containing over 200 medications and supplies most frequently needed during emergencies – throughout the region.

Eight packs are currently strategically placed at health centers and clinics throughout Louisiana, including at Access Health Louisiana and Baptist Community Health Services.

“The Direct Relief products will help with the fallout. They will service our patients with many medications they can’t get from the pharmacies,” said Barrios.

“The Direct Relief gifts that arrived last week…are being utilized to get us through the next few days,” Powers said.  “Today, we actually have a team of three people who are working in this office next to me, taking those hurricane relief supplies and dividing them into their intended uses.”

The “go bags” that doctors will keep with them are likewise filled with Direct Relief supplies. “They could be used in an emergent encounter, with somebody in crisis,” Powers said.

For Barrios, events like these bring a sense of tremendous responsibility. “We’re community care, and we have to be there on the ground to take care of these people,” she said. “We’ve been there, done that, and we hope someone would be there for us.”

The post Health Centers Gear Up for Tropical Storm Barry appeared first on Direct Relief.

Today, though, that technology is an indispensable part of how government agencies and aid groups understand and respond to severe weather events. Watching a storm gather, and understanding the factors that contribute to it, tells responders where it will land and how quickly, helping them support vulnerable communities and distribute resources where they think they’ll be most needed.

But they’re not always right – in part because weather modeling isn’t perfect, but also because they’ve had to leave out at least half the story. What about the people in the storm’s path? Where are they going (if they leave at all), and how quickly will they get there? Who gets left behind? Until now, it hasn’t been possible to visualize that information in the way meteorologists can visualize an oncoming hurricane.

Thanks to large-scale population movement data – anonymized and aggregated by Facebook – that’s beginning to change.

Imagine a newscaster guiding an audience through the track of a hurricane, then using population data to show how many are at risk. As the storm comes closer to land, they also show the movement of people fleeing the coast. Hour after hour, they’ll track the people leaving their homes. When do they leave, and how far do they go? How long are they in transit? And how many people remain as the storm gains ground?

Now, government agencies and NGOs alike will have answers to these questions. And disaster response will change significantly, for the better, as a result. Direct Relief has already begun to partner with officials in Harris County – which includes Houston and was severely impacted by Hurricane Harvey in 2017 – to help them use Facebook population mapping to plan future disaster response efforts.

“In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, we had to rely on physical damage assessments to get a sense of the damage,” said Francisco Sánchez, Jr., a Harris County deputy emergency management coordinator who participated in the Harvey response. “Mapping population data and matching it with other data networks will help us identify hard-hit communities and their specific needs more quickly.”

Here’s how:

1) In the moment, emergency responders will be able to allocate resources more precisely. Under normal circumstances, responders know where people tend to gather (like shopping centers and schools) and can make an educated guess about where best to position resources – whether they’re distributing face masks, providing medicine and personal care items, or placing a medical mobile unit in a vulnerable community.

But people don’t always move to expected locations or at anticipated speeds. And now, organizations will be able to account for that. If they’re watching the data as people evacuate, they’ll incorporate that knowledge in when they’re deciding where to place resources, and change plans in response to demand.

“Disasters move at a quick pace, so if data partnerships can give us real-time information about what happened to who, when, and where, we can make better decisions about how to respond more effectively,” Sánchez said.

2) As things unfold, communication will be more effective. When people connect to the Internet via apps, they’ll transmit information about their network connectivity – how soon they’re able to come back online, whether they have a fast 4G connection or are struggling with a 2G signal.

With that information, aid organizations will know where to provide emergency bandwidth, so people can receive important messages and communicate with loved ones. They’ll also know when people are completely in the dark and, when necessary, get reliable communication to them in person.

3) Once people evacuate, it will be easier to help the vulnerable individuals left behind. Data about specific communities is already available: average income, prevalence of disease, whether there’s a high percentage of children, if there’s a nursing home or retirement community nearby. And when people don’t own a car or aren’t mobile enough to move quickly, they’re more likely to stay put during an emergency.

When that knowledge is combined with a stream of constantly updating population data, it’s easier to figure out who’s probably left behind and how to assist most effectively, whether that’s providing evacuation support or helping them shelter in place.

4) Over the long term, aid groups can provide better support for displaced communities. When a big storm like Harvey wreaks havoc, people can’t go back to their homes – sometimes for years. And displaced people are particularly vulnerable: They’re more likely to use up their financial resources and more likely to have a medical emergency or end up in the hospital.

When organizations track population movement data, they know where displaced communities have gone, how long they’re staying away, and how far they’re dispersed. That means they can coordinate with nearby organizations to provide more continuous, reliable care while people slowly recover from a disaster.

5) For the future, accumulated data from a lot of individual disasters will teach responders more about how people behave as they’re unfolding. Until recently, no one was recording this behavior on a large scale. Responders went into individual disasters with the weight of collective experience behind them, but without much hard data.

If aid groups know more about how things unfolded during a number of past disasters – how quickly people moved away from the coastlines, how far they traveled, whether the roads were open, and who couldn’t make the journey – they can be pretty confident of how events will unfold in the future.

That’s a never-before-available level of advanced knowledge, and it means that emergency responders can place resources wherever they’ll be needed most urgently, before a disaster even hits. When people arrive at a shelter or facility, they’ll be much more likely to have medicine, food, and clothing – even a reliable Internet connection – waiting there for them.

The post Tracking Population Data Could Change Disaster Response appeared first on Direct Relief.

On Tuesday, Direct Relief reached out to more than 100 partner health facilities in Arkansas, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi and Oklahoma to offer support, should those clinics and health centers need assistance in the storm’s wake.

Large amounts of rain, along with high winds and storm surges, are expected to batter the coast. The swath of coastline from Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, to Alabama and Florida’s shared state line are under hurricane warning, with a larger area of coast under tropical storm warning.

Remember that impacts from #Gordon will extend well beyond the “forecast cone” that we see as part of official forecasts. Consult your local forecast at https://t.co/VyWINDk3xP and heed advice from local authorities. pic.twitter.com/4MT21Kkbd2

— National Weather Service (@NWS) September 4, 2018

Governors of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana have all declared states of emergency in anticipation of the storm.

Direct Relief is ready to assist with immediate requests, and also operates a hurricane preparedness program throughout the region, which pre-positions caches of medicines and medical supplies in storm-prone areas.

Each pack contains enough medicines and supplies to treat 100 patients for three to five days after a hurricane hits, and includes medicines to manage chronic conditions like diabetes and high-blood pressure. Storm events like hurricanes often prompt evacuations, during which people often forget medications needed to maintain their health and stay out of medical crisis.

The program was formed after Hurricane Katrina devastated the region in 2005, and has been expanded and refined since.

The post U.S. Gulf Coast On Alert As Tropical Storm Gordon Nears Landfall appeared first on Direct Relief.

A reported 20,000 houses in refugee camps for Rohingya were damaged in the wake of the storm, leaving many with no place to return.

Direct Relief has reached out to health partners in the area to asses current medical needs and coordinate response efforts. In addition to organizations in hard-hit Bangladesh and Myanmar, Direct Relief has also contacted local groups in Nepal and India. The ASEAN AHA Centre has also been part of these efforts.

The post Cyclone Mora Hits Bangladesh appeared first on Direct Relief.

Tropical Storm Nate is on a deadly trajectory through the Gulf of Mexico, with fatalities already recorded in Nicaragua, Honduras and Costa Rica. Significant flooding has also forced thousands in Nicaragua to evacuate their homes.

The storm is predicted to make landfall on the Gulf Coast on Sunday, when it is expected to have strengthened to a Category 1 Hurricane, meaning winds over 75 miles per hour could result.

Rainfall of 3 to 6 inches is expected, with 12 inches in some locations, across the U.S. Gulf Coast states, eastern Tennessee Valley and southern Appalachians, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Louisiana’s Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency on Thursday, and the City of New Orleans will enforce a curfew Saturday evening as the city braces for the storm.

Direct Relief has been in contact with the Pan American Health Organization, as well as healthcare partners in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras to offer assistance.

Direct Relief also offered assistance to 161 partners in Nate’s projected path in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee.

Direct Relief has an extensive Hurricane Preparedness Program, which prepositions medical supplies in areas prone to seasonal Atlantic and Pacific hurricanes. These packs are available for healthcare providers to use when a hurricane strikes, and there are several prepositioned in Nicaragua and Honduras, as well as 11 in storm’s U.S. path.

Direct Relief will continue monitoring the storm and stands ready to respond as needed.

The post Deadly Tropical Storm Nate Gathers Strength on Path to U.S. Gulf appeared first on Direct Relief.

• While storms of 2017 didn’t increase in number compared to years past, they increased in strength.
• Whether 2017 storm season is “new normal” remains uncertain.
• True resiliency for health systems means planning for crisis, not just bouncing back.

On Sept. 13, 2017, the National Hurricane Center began monitoring an atmospheric trough near the northern coast of South America. Three days later, right around the Lesser Antilles, that long low-pressure zone coalesced and built up enough power to be named a tropical storm. Two days after that, unusually warm waters in the Atlantic, approaching 86 F, fed a massive increase in the storm’s power and sent it hurtling northward towards the Leeward islands on the eastern edge of the Caribbean Sea.

This was Hurricane Maria. It made landfall with devastating force on the island of Dominica and then again with a direct hit at Category 4 strength across the island of Puerto Rico. When Maria struck Puerto Rico, it was the strongest storm there in nearly a century, knocking out in one massive blow all electricity and most telecommunications, ripping roofs, doors and windows from buildings, sending torrents of flood water throughout the river systems which flow like veins through the mountainous interior. Core infrastructure on the island will take months to recover.

Maria was the 13th named storm of the current Atlantic hurricane season and the third to make landfall in highly populated areas at Category 4 or above. Governments, citizens, journalists and relief workers of all kinds expressed not only sorrow and support for the victims, but a kind of exhausted bewilderment at the remarkable succession of events, made all the more intense by concurrent earthquakes not too far away in Oaxaca and then again in Mexico City.

Old questions arose with fresh urgency: Was this year different? Have we arrived finally at the outpost of a long-predicted “new normal” in which climate change fuels increasing frequency and ferocity of storms at levels and speeds beyond the design of our infrastructures and our historic capacities to respond?

A Tipping Point?

The answer to these questions is at once straightforward and impossible to determine. On the one hand, the science is clear and unambiguous: there is no doubt that the buildup of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere is raising air and water temperatures, altering wind and current flows, and steadily increasing the frequency and ferocity of major storms. It’s not only in the Atlantic where this is happening, but throughout the world, where in the same time period marked by the furor of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Jose and Maria, large parts of West Africa and South Asia also saw nearly unprecedented and deadly flooding.

The Atlantic season measured in number of hurricanes is high, but hardly without precursors. Yet measured in terms of the total amount of energy mustered by these storms, it marks a first of its kind in the annals of recorded weather data. We’re not sure whether it happened exactly this year, or over the past ten, but we’ve arrived at an anticipated but desolate outpost of our epoch, confronting a turbulent new landscape ahead of us.

The thing about turbulence is that specific consequences can be hard to predict with great certainty. Will the 2018 or 2019 seasons be worse than 2017? Should we now expect three or more storms at Category 4 or above each year? Should we move away from the coasts this very minute? On these points, in the near term, it’s really anyone’s guess. Storm seasons vary in frequency and intensity. They always have and they always will.

Possibly the curvature of the variation on all the metrics that matter is bending steadily upwards. But the fact of variation, much like the fact of carbon emissions’ impact on global temperatures, is not in doubt. Next year could be better or it could be much worse. We don’t, and can’t, really know. It’s wise in that sense not to get too fixated on the immediate prognostication game.

In any event, prognostication of the immediate future, although it seems to be laden with immense urgency, can also easily distract from the more pressing questions of our time. What can practically be done to prepare ourselves for the new patterns of variation which are surely to come? What does a society which is equitably and honestly prepared for the climate changed future even look like? I ask these questions not as someone involved in climate science or the policy of energy systems, but in humanitarian relief and global health. I ask them in terms of operational activity and in terms of the universal values upon which humanitarianism is based.

It certainly seems that the variations are going to get wilder over time, with profound implications for the health of individuals and communities, and for the infrastructures of power, communications, water, food and shelter upon which we all depend. Maybe not next year, or even the year after, but the signs of the landscape are unmistakable – this new world has in some sense arrived already, and we would ignore the signs only at the cost of great ignorance and peril.

The Meaning of Resilience

“Resilience” is buzzword often used to described this sense of needing to prepare for, or brace against, an unruly future. It’s also an odd word choice. To be “resilient” as a personality type is to be someone who takes what life throws at them and makes of it what they will. It emphasizes recovery, being able to “bounce back” to retain whatever it is that the storm had washed away. It places the burden of planning not so much on hardening ourselves to deflect impact, but on bending in the face of mounting adversity, though never quite breaking. Despite these nuances, there’s something missing from “resilience.”

What “resilience” fails to convey is the sense that societies of the future may need to be different than societies of the past. “Bouncing back,” in other words, may not be sufficient.

Among the most obvious examples is post-Maria Puerto Rico. While the island does need to regain the capacity to generate electricity for all of its citizens, replicating the same electrical grid in the same way would be self-defeating. The Puerto Rican power systems should not “bounce back,” nor should it “bounce back better.” What is needed, from the standpoint of power generation, is a new approach that distributes capacities across many different sources and modes of generation, preventing the knock-out blow just witnessed, while at the same time considering how, for what and for whom we are generating power.

The grid pre-Maria functioned poorly and failed to serve the island’s residents equally. Complaints were issued constantly, from many quarters, regarding not only outages, but also the inefficiency and inconvenience of an opaque and convoluted system. The healthcare system faces many of the same problems and choices. Prior to Hurricane Maria, even by official estimates, the system wasn’t working well. Of 78 municipalities on the island, 73 were considered by the federal government to be “medically underserved.”  In Maria’s aftermath, healthcare workers throughout Puerto Rico are struggling to provide what care they can at the highest standards they are capable of. For them and the communities they serve, to just “bounce back” isn’t enough. Doing so would, at the most, return people to precarious place they were before the hurricane.

The turbulence of our climate, whether next month or next year, or years to come, poses enormous challenges of both practical design and imagination. Roads must be cleared, hospitals and clinics must be restocked, communication networks must be repaired, and the lights need to come back on. But that’s not enough to avoid a repeat of this crisis. We also must imagine new forms of infrastructure and systems that can withstand the future and serve everyone equally.

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An estimated 17 million people were under a storm warning Wednesday, and heavy rains were expected to extend from the South as far north as the Ohio Valley Thursday and Friday.

Cities like Lake Charles, Louisiana, have already experienced flash flooding, with knee-deep water reported in some areas.

Portions of Mississippi have received almost 10 inches of rain from the storm system so far. The National Weather Service stated that flooding is expected to continue throughout the region.

Extreme rain amounts of 12 inches or more could happen in localized areas, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Along with flash flooding and high winds, tornadoes may also result. A tornado watch is in effect for portions of southern Alabama, eastern Louisiana, southern Mississippi and western Florida, according to the National Weather Service.

Direct Relief continues to be in contact with 150 partner health clinics and facilities that may be affected by storm impacts. Direct Relief is also communicating with primary care associations in Texas and Louisiana, as well as the National Association of Community Health Centers and the National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics. The Primary Care Association Emergency Management Advisory Coalition has also been contacted.

Atlantic hurricane season officially began June 1, and in preparation for storms to come, Direct Relief prepositioned medical supplies in communities vulnerable to the storms. The Hurricane Preparedness Packs were deployed to nine vulnerable U.S. states – including those threatened by Tropical Storm Cindy – as well as five Caribbean and Central American countries.

Together, the packs include enough supplies to treat tens of thousands of people for trauma or chronic conditions in the aftermath of hurricanes or other destructive weather events. The effort eliminates delivery delays and allows medical professionals to treat injured or ill patients quickly when an emergency strikes.

In emergency situations, people who depend on medications for chronic conditions – primarily diabetes, asthma, and hypertension – are particularly at risk if their medications are unavailable. People often leave their medication at home during mass evacuations. Also, power outages can compromise insulin or other supplies that require refrigeration.

People vulnerable to storms also tend to be those who are most vulnerable in general. Those with disabilities or language barriers may be unable to evacuate or receive early warning communications. Elderly residents and those without access to transportation may be unable to flee a storm’s path in time. Poverty is also a vulnerability factor, and people without the means to pay for a place to stay and transportation can also find themselves at risk.

Direct Relief is able to supply the hurricane preparedness packs free of charge to safety-net healthcare facilities, thanks to donations from individuals, pharmaceutical and medical corporations, and through a long-standing relationship with FedEx.

Key corporate donors to the program include Abbott, AbbVie, Alcon Laboratories, AstraZeneca, BD, CVS Corporation, Eli Lilly & Company, KVK-Tech, Magno-Humphries Labs, Merck, Pfizer, Sagent Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Pasteur, Vaseline ® and others.

Should any facilities impacted by Tropical Storm Cindy request additional storm assistance, Direct Relief will respond immediately with emergency medicines and supplies.

(Editor’s note: This story was updated on June 22, 2017, at 9:45 a.m.)

The post As Tropical Storm Cindy Barrels Across Gulf, Emergency Supplies Ready appeared first on Direct Relief.

Three people were killed Tuesday as a result of the storm in Panama City, Panama. That area experienced heavy rains and winds in advance of the storm making landfall.

Over 4,000 residents in northern Costa Rica were told Tuesday to evacuate.

Hurricane conditions are possible in these areas Wednesday night through Thursday morning.

Flash flooding is also a concern throughout Central America, with some areas expected to be pummeled with 20 inches of rain.

Direct Relief stands ready to respond to the resource needs of local healthcare clinics by drawing on its standing inventory of medical supplies.

Direct Relief also has a hurricane preparedness pack located with the Ministry of Health in Managua, Nicaragua. That pack contains enough medicines and medical supplies to treat 5,000 people for a month following a disaster.

Direct Relief will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as information becomes available.

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A storm of Hermine’s strength presents several risks. Heavy rainfall causes deadly flooding. Hurricane-force winds topple power lines and trees, causing widespread power outages and damaged infrastructure. Tornadoes also pose a threat as the storm moves inland and up the coast.

Hermine already has caused extensive flooding along Florida’s Gulf Coast, prompting evacuation orders in several coastal communities.

Direct Relief’s Response

Direct Relief has extended offers of essential resources – chronic disease medications, antibiotics, wound and personal care supplies, and vaccines — to 59 health facilities in the storm’s projected path.

In emergency situations involving mass evacuations, persons with chronic medical conditions – primarily diabetes, asthma, and hypertension – are particularly at risk of a medical emergency if the medications they depend on are unavailable.

Before hurricane season, and in anticipation of such scenarios, Direct Relief prepositioned hurricane modules with 50 healthcare facilities in hurricane-prone regions of the Gulf and Atlantic Coasts.

Each module holds enough medical supplies to treat 100 patients for a variety of conditions, from basic trauma injuries to chronic illnesses, for a 72-hour period, during which follow-on support can be mobilized.

Seven of these modules are now stationed along Hermine’s projected path.

Tracking Hurricane Hermine

To view the live track of the storm in relation to Direct Relief’s partners, click on the map below.

Direct Relief will continue to monitor the situation as it evolves, and stands ready to respond to a likely emergency situation.

Latest News

NPR

Mashable

The post Emergency Update: Florida Braces as Hermine Strengthens to Hurricane appeared first on Direct Relief.

Situation Report 9/1:

Tropical Storm Erika hit the small Caribbean Island of 72,000 people last Wednesday, dropping 13 inches of rain in a 12-hour period.  The storm has resulted in deadly mudslides and severe flooding that have destroyed roads, bridges and houses across the island.   According to the Red Cross, between 10,000 and 20,000 people have been affected and half of the island is still without electricity.  The Prime Minister of Dominica, Roosevelt Skerrit, has declared nine local areas as disaster zones with many areas only accessible by boat or helicopter.

Reported deaths: 25+

Estimated IDPs due to Storm: Unknown

Estimated Affected Population: 10,000 – 20,000

Situation Report 8/28:

Direct Relief is monitoring the path of Tropical Storm Erika, currently over Haiti and Dominican Republic, en route to Florida. TS Erika is forecasted to make landfall in Florida by Monday morning.

Direct Relief has reached out via email and text message to 62 health center and clinic partners in Florida. Direct Relief is also in contact with the Florida Association of Community Health Centers and the Emergency Management Advisory Committee team at the national association level.

Direct Relief has prepositioned 13 emergency medical modules with health facilities throughout Florida, with additional modules in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

The post Emergency Update: Tropical Storm Erika appeared first on Direct Relief.

Reinforcing the importance of emergency preparedness, health providers in the regions hit by Tropical Storm Jamgi should have access to the medical resources distributed by Direct Relief earlier this month in response to Typhoon Hagupit. This includes emergency response packs, medications and supplies that were sent to Eastern Samar Provincial Hospital and Samar Provincial Hospital. Three Typhoon Modules are still positioned in the Visayas and Direct Relief’s main warehouse in Cebu.

Emergency staff are working to connect with local health facilities in the affected regions, although the holiday might slow responses.

Please check back in the coming days for more updates.

The post Tropical Storm Jangmi Claims 53 Lives in the Philippines appeared first on Direct Relief.

More than one million people have been affected across 27 provinces, with nearly 130,000 people seeking shelter at 324 evacuation centers. At least 11 people have been killed and 425 houses destroyed, reports the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

The Emergency Response team is in touch with the Philippines Department of Health and the Philippine Red Cross as they evaluate medical supply needs. Additionally, two forty-foot containers of medicines and medical supplies valued at $150,000 are currently en route to the Philippines Department of Health in Manila and an another forty-foot container is headed to health center partners in Cebu. Medicines and supplies contained in these shipments may be used in recovery efforts.

The team will continue to monitor health needs in the area. To donate to Direct Relief’s emergency preparedness and response efforts, click here. Follow @DirectRelief on Twitter for the latest updates on this response.

The post Responding to Flooding in Manila and Luzon, Philippines appeared first on Direct Relief.

The team is in touch with the Mexican Association of Malta, which is working with Caritas Mexico in the state of Baja California Sur and has identified 170 temporary shelters where people who evacuated from their homes are seeking care. Direct Relief has also been connected to officials at SEMAR, the Mexican Navy, which is the branch responsible for disaster recovery, as well as officials at CENAPRED, Mexico’s national emergency management agency.

Additionally, Direct Relief is in contact with the Santa Barbara-based group AeroMedicos that flies a team of doctors to conduct monthly medical missions in lower Baja. AeroMedicos is awaiting the opening of local, rural airports so that they can help deliver essential medicines directly to affected rural health facilities.

A doctor operating a facility in Todos Santos reported they are in need of pain relievers, antiparasitic medicines, and IV fluids, as they anticipate a surge in dengue and other waterborne diseases. Direct Relief has items frequently requested after storms  available at its warehouse, including: personal care items such as soap and shampoo, emergency medical packs, and nutritional items.

The team will continue to monitor health needs in the area. To donate to Direct Relief’s emergency preparedness and response efforts, click here. Follow @DirectRelief on Twitter for the latest updates on this response.

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The team today notified 19 health center and clinic partners in three states (North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia) that additional emergency medical supplies are stockpiled at Direct Relief’s warehouse and are ready to ship at request in the event of an emergency.

Additionally, a Hurricane Preparedness Pack is on standby in the immediate warning area at the Broad Street Clinic Foundation in Morehead City, N.C., with two other packs located just outside the current predicted trajectory.

Each pack contains enough critical medicines and supplies to treat 100 people for 72 hours in the immediate aftermath of an emergency. The packs are pre-positioned in at-risk communities at the start of hurricane season, June 1.

Donate here to support Direct Relief’s emergency preparedness and response efforts. $20 can ensure that one person has access to the medical aid they need immediately after a disaster strikes.

Click here to view Direct Relief’s hurricane map, which shows the locations of the preparedness packs in relation to the live weather feed and learn more about the Hurricane Preparedness Program.

The post Emergency Aid Ready as Tropical Storm Arthur Approaches East Coast appeared first on Direct Relief.

Though the winds carrying Tropical Storm Karen have dropped and it is not expected to become a hurricane, NBC reports that experts recommend people in the area brace for a significant storm. Storms that are relatively low on a hurricane scale can still cause substantial damage, such as Category 1 Hurricane Sandy in 2012, which caused nearly 300 deaths and more than $68 billion in damage.

At the beginning of hurricane season (June 1), Direct Relief deployed Hurricane Preparedness Packs to 50 communities in nine hurricane-prone states to ensure readiness for the season.

The extensive pre-positioning effort guards against storm-related health risks by providing portable stockpiles of medications and supplies that are most needed in the aftermath of a hurricane.

The packs contain more than 160 separate items identified by experience, usage, and adjusted based on ongoing feedback and experience from partner organizations in an expanding number of states each year since the program began in 2007.

Each U.S. Hurricane Preparedness Pack holds enough medical supplies to treat 100 patients for a variety of conditions, from basic trauma injuries to chronic illnesses, for a 72-hour period. This supply allows the partner organizations to continue providing essential services while needs are assessed and additional medicines and supplies can be shipped.

Direct Relief’s team will be on standby over the weekend as the storm makes landfall. Please follow our Twitter account @DirectRelief for updates.

The post Aid Ready as Tropical Storm Karen Approaches Gulf Coast appeared first on Direct Relief.

The worst damage was in the west, in the mountains and valleys of the state of Guerrero – home to many of the poorest and most vulnerable communities in the country.

Since that time, historically hard rains have continued in many parts of Guerrero causing the flooding to worsen. Critical roadways have been cut off, including those around the major city of Acapulco. A number of impoverished communities are now isolated and more than 300 municipalities around the country have been designated disaster zones by the Mexican government.

Direct Relief’s Eduardo Mendoza and one of our professional volunteers from GlaxoSmithKline, Ana Pasillas, spent the bulk of Monday meeting with high-ranking officials in the Mexican Navy to understand the situation and determine the best available course of action.

In Mexico, the Navy often leads logistical responsibilities for bringing aid to those in need, particularly for coastal regions.

Tomorrow, Eduardo and Ana will be joining Mexican naval personnel once again for overflight assessments of the heaviest flooding. In consultation with the state of Guerrero’s Secretary of Health and the Secretary of Civil Protection, they will be prioritizing medical needs and initiating the flow of medical assistance.

With support from our corporate medical suppliers and collaboration with the Mexican authorities, Direct Relief very soon hopes to meet the critical needs of communities affected by flooding throughout the state of Guerrero. Please continue to visit our blog for updates regarding this response.

The post Organizing Flood Relief Efforts in Mexico appeared first on Direct Relief.

Direct Relief’s Hurricane Preparedness Program is the only initiative of its kind, whereby large quantities of medicines and supplies are pre-positioned at community health centers, clinics and hospitals in at-risk areas across in the U.S., and internationally to be used during emergencies to treat vulnerable populations.

Since 2007, Direct Relief has provided emergency medical materials to key healthcare institutions in areas susceptible to hurricanes. Pre-positioning the modules at clinics and hospitals eliminates delivery delays and equips medical professionals with the materials to treat injured patients on-site when a hurricane strikes.

The Hurricane Preparedness Program began in the U.S. Gulf States and has expanded each year to include nine states in the U.S. and seven countries in the Caribbean. The contents of these modules were originally designed as part of Direct Relief’s participation on the Texas Blue Ribbon Commission on Emergency Preparedness and Response following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The modules include medicines and supplies to treat a variety of conditions, from trauma injuries to chronic conditions. Experience and feedback from partners is used to continually improve the contents and packaging of the pack.

In addition to the pre-positioned modules, Direct Relief has readied additional medicines and supplies at it’s headquarters which are ready to be airlifted should healthcare partners request additional resources in response to Hurricane Isaac.

The post Tropical Storm Isaac Threatens Haiti, Dominican Republic appeared first on Direct Relief.

The Direct Relief team has reached out to its more than 100-partner network in Haiti to offer assistance for people affected by the storm, which is expected to bring mudslides, flooding, and heavy rain to Haiti over the next two days, according to news reports. With more than 650,000 people living in temporary shelters and tents, Emily brings an increased threat of waterborne diseases, including cholera and infections of the skin and respiratory system.

In addition to materials that stand ready at Direct Relief’s secure warehouse in Port-au-Prince, six emergency aid modules have been pre-positioned specifically for hurricane relief in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

Before hurricane season started in June, Direct Relief strategically positioned six Hurricane Preparedness Modules in key locations across the Caribbean and Central America, in areas particularly vulnerable to storm damage. These sites include Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. Hurricane Module recipients are advised to use the contents of the modules as needed to respond to emergency situations. The modules are designed to supply healthcare providers with the material they contain materials to treat up to 5,000 people for a month. This ensures that facilities are equipped to care for their patients in those first critical hours and days after a hurricane strikes, and don’t have to wait for additional aid shipments, which are often delayed by logistical challenges.

The post Tropical Storm Emily: Aid Stands Ready appeared first on Direct Relief.

An initial consignment of antibiotics, antifungal agents, and medicines to treat respiratory conditions is being prepared to send to Caritas de Guatemala, a trusted partner that has been active in emergency response and reconstruction efforts in the country since Hurricane Stan in 2005. In El Salvador, longtime partner FUSAL has requested personal care items for families displaced by flooding there.

Direct Relief’s emergency response team has been corresponding with partners on the ground providing medical care and emergency assistance. One partner has reported that in Chimaltenango, Guatemala, many families have lost everything, including their homes and their crops. Though clean up has begun, the airport there is closed to cargo traffic in the next few days, roads are blocked with mudflows, and bridges have been damaged, making transportation difficult.

Direct Relief is preparing medical aid shipments so they can be dispatched immediately on news of open delivery channels.

The post Direct Relief Assembling Needed Medical Aid for Guatemala, El Salvador appeared first on Direct Relief.

According to partner reports, the main health issues currently facing the affected population include the lack of potable water and water-borne illnesses like diarrhea and skin infections, which are common during large-scale floods. High concentrations of displaced people are usually correlated with an increase in upper respiratory conditions as well.

Direct Relief is currently collaborating mainly with Mercy Relief, a Singapore-based secular non-governmental organization focused on shelter, water and sanitation, livelihoods, education and healthcare.

Several of Direct Relief’s longtime corporate supporters have already pledged commitments of support, including Abbott Laboratories, Johnson & Johnson, and Bristol-Myers Squibb. Direct Relief has also made contact with the Philippine consulate in Los Angeles to offer assistance through official government channels.

Ketsana, a Category 1 tropical storm at the time, landed on the island of Luzon on the morning of September 26, bringing over 15 inches of rainfall within 6 hours and causing severe flash floods in 25 provinces and cities. At least 140 people have died and 32 are missing as of Monday morning, according to official government reports.

Direct Relief has a long history of responding to flood emergencies worldwide, as well as supporting healthcare in the Philippines dating back to 1964. Since 2000, Philippine partners have received over $3.6 million (wholesale) in specifically requested medical material assistance.

The post Direct Relief Extends Emergency Medical Aid to Philippines appeared first on Direct Relief.

As needs are identified with local partner organizations in country, Direct Relief will deliver requested medical aid to Haiti, where Gustav has caused extensive flooding and 51 deaths. Landslides in neighboring Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola, have killed eight people. Packing winds of 70 mph and building toward hurricane strength, Gustav is winding its way over Jamaica and is scheduled to make landfall along the U.S. Gulf Coast by Tuesday.

In July, Direct Relief delivered Hurricane Preparedness Packs to its partners in the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and the U.S. Gulf States of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. The packs, which contain medical materials to treat 100 patients for a range of traumas and conditions for a 72-hour period, were developed after careful analysis of the health conditions and lack of available medications to treat them following 2005’s Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Direct Relief provides humanitarian assistance on an ongoing basis to charitable health facilities in Haiti, Jamaica, and other Caribbean nations. Personal care supplies, antibiotics, analgesics, and first-aid materials are among the most commonly supplied items. Direct Relief has been providing assistance in Haiti since 1964; since 1989, it has delivered $77.5 million (wholesale) in medical material aid.

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