Our Response - Hurricanes Irma and Maria

November 2017

 

Our Cuba Response

It is hard to imagine the damaged inflicted by a Category 5 monster hurricane like Irma. Shearing 185 mph winds lasting for hours and rotating in all directions combined with strong rains and flooding, left few things intact throughout the northern coast of Cuba.  The results have been: thousands of people affected, difficult access to isolated communities, food shortages, and health problems caused by contaminated water. But like a tree falling in a forest. Very little is reported about the catastrophic damage.

Our Response

With your very generous help, we are paying for fuel to get the trucks into the zone, serving hot meals in community kitchens, and sending containers of donated dehydrated meal food packs, water purification tablets, and hygiene kits as fast as we can. 

Our Caribbean Response

We are also helping our brothers and sisters in the Caribbean Islands where Antigua & Barbuda was devastated by Hurricane Irma.  The entire population on Barbuda had to be evacuated and the rebuilding effort is slowly getting off the ground. In addition, Dominica was severely damaged by Hurricane Maria. Thousands of low income and working-class homes were destroyed as were schools, hospitals and other infrastructure including electricity generation and distribution.

Our Response

Recently we received a donation of 16 diesel generators and other disaster relief materials valued at over $500,000 to provide assistance to hurricane refugees in both Dominica and Antigua.  A grant from a local foundation provided the funds necessary to transport the disaster relief items to these islands.

We have also been providing back office support to various organizations providing assistance to the disaster victims in the well-documented post hurricane disaster in Puerto Rico.

Here is how we have used your generous support thus far:

• $28,000 was leveraged to ship $600,000 GIK food pack. More than 1 million meals!
• Shipped $300,000 in hygiene kits and emergency baby products.
• $30,000 used to help the local church fix roofs and operate community hot meal kitchens.
• $80,000 used to contract with shipping company to process 12 containers of emergency food valued at more than $1.5 million US.
• $25,000 from the U.S. Caribbean Strong Relief Fund used to ship 13 urgently needed diesel generators to Antigua and Dominica

 

 EchoCuba a Ministry of OUTREACH AID TO THE AMERICAS, INC.

 

WWW.ECHOCUBA.ORG  .  WWW.OAAUSA.ORG