Americares emergency teams are responding to major storms in the United States and the Philippines.
— an announcement from Americares
Responding to Florence
The response team was in Raleigh Saturday morning packing a shipment of hygiene products including toothpaste, soap, shampoo and adult diapers for a medical shelter in Clayton, NC.
“Federal officials contacted us requesting supplies for a shelter housing 200 people with serious medical needs,” said Americares Emergency Response Specialist Tom Cotter, who is leading the team in North Carolina. “As we head out today into hard-hit communities we expect to identify more needs and deliver more supplies.”
A shipment of 1,400 first aid kits and 800 hygiene kits left Americares distribution center in Stamford early Saturday morning, destined for North Carolina.
Photo by Tom Cotter for Americares.
Americares relief workers in Raleigh, North Carolina, prepare a shipment of hygiene supplies for a medical shelter housing storm evacuees on Saturday, Sept. 15.
The health-focused relief and development organization has offered assistance to more than 90 partner health clinics in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.
Americares is prepared to help health facilities serving low-income and uninsured patients repair storm damage and replace damaged medicine and supplies.
Florence, now a tropical storm, has been lashing the Carolinas for two days, downing trees and flooding communities. Seven deaths have been reported, including a mother and a child killed by a fallen tree. Catastrophic flooding and life-threatening storm surges continue to pose serious risks.
In the Philippines
Where Typhoon Mangkhut made landfall in northern Luzon early Saturday killing 14 people and forcing tens of thousands to flee their homes, Americares dispatched a medical team to impacted areas.
Relief workers left the Americares office in Manila on Saturday headed to Cagayan with hygiene kits, cleaning supplies and medical supplies. The team expected to begin providing medical care to survivors as soon as Sunday.
Relief Operations
Americares has professional relief workers ready to respond to disasters at a moment’s notice and stocks emergency medicine and supplies in its warehouses in the U.S., Europe and India that can be delivered quickly in times of crisis.
The organization has a long history of responding to emergencies in the U.S., including hurricanes Sandy, Harvey, Irma and Maria and the 2018 California wildfires.
Americares responds to an average of 30 natural disasters and humanitarian crises worldwide each year, establishes long-term recovery projects and brings disaster preparedness programs to vulnerable communities.
Donations to Americares Worldwide Disaster Relief Fund will support its emergency response efforts in the U.S. and around the world. To donate, go to americares.org/worldwide.