Samaritan’s Purse sent a Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) along with more than 24 tons of life-saving supplies to the Caribbean. The N.C.-based organization stood up an Incident Management Team over the weekend as Hurricane Beryl began to strengthen, preparing to respond to the storm. Less than 24 hours after the hurricane made landfall, the Samaritan’s Purse DC-8 cargo plane departed Greensboro, NC. with 600 rolls of tarp, 3,000 solar lights, a desalination water unit, 300 collapsible jerry cans, and a mobile medical unit. In addition to these emergency relief supplies, the cargo plane also transported 13 disaster response specialists to Grenada.
Convoy of Hope is now responding to Hurricane Beryl, the earliest category 5 storm in the recorded history of the Atlantic basin. Convoy is working to get essential relief supplies to survivors of the storm throughout the Caribbean, and planning ahead as the storm barrels toward Jamaica.
Much of what we're doing now is working with our partners in that region to assess the damage and secure supplies for the islands. This is just the start of what could be a very busy and very destructive hurricane season. - Ethan Forhetz, Convoy of Hope, Springfield, Mo.
This rapid deployment and mobilization of humanitarian aid and resources is aimed at providing critical support to the island communities and families anticipated to be the most affected by the storm. Most importantly, Samaritan’s Purse is deploying to bring help and the hope of Jesus Christ to families who are grappling with severe loss in the aftermath of the storm.
“Hurricane Beryl pummeled the Windward Islands, and left thousands of families in need of emergency relief,” said Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse. “We started building out pallets of cargo before the hurricane even made landfall and are now on the way with life-saving aid. Please join me in praying for the families who are in the path of this storm, and for our Samaritan’s Purse staff who will be serving them.”
Hurricane Beryl, which made landfall in Grenada as a Category 4 hurricane—the earliest on record—quickly grew in strength to a Category 5, bringing devastating floods, high-wind damage, and power outages to the Windward Islands. Samaritan’s Purse is preparing to distribute emergency shelter material and to set up water filtration systems in areas that have been heavily damaged and are now without access to clean water. The organization is coordinating with local church partners in the area that Samaritan’s Purse has worked with through its project Operation Christmas Child.