| Above: Red Cross, Indian River County EMS and Indian River Sheriff personnel assist an evacuee who needed medical attention, at an evacuation shelter at the Vero Beach High School Freshman Learning Center, in advance of the potential arrival of Hurricane Dorian, in Vero Beach, Fla., Monday, Sept. 2, 2019. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert. |
With the horrific devastation wrought by Hurricane Dorian in The Bahamas now becoming apparent, I urge you to support your favorite disaster relief charities, and consider a donation to my favorite ones—Portlight and Hurriup. According to the International Federation of the Red Cross, 62,000 people on the Abaco Islands and Grand Bahama do not have access to fresh water and will need support. More than 13,000 houses are believed to have been damaged or destroyed--about 45 per cent of all dwellings on the two islands. With Dorian set to sweep up the Southeast U.S. coast this week, more disaster response assistance will be needed there.
Whole neighborhoods were swept by mighty surge higher than anything in memory. Areas above water had catastrophic wind damage. Many deaths reported from drowning, flying debris, & collapsing houses. Medical clinic overwhelmed. An absolute catastrophe. SEND HELP TO ABACO ISLANDS.
— Josh Morgerman (@iCyclone) September 3, 2019
Portlight.org
One of the most gratifying experiences of my career has been the emergence of the community of weather enthusiasts that arisen in the comments section of my blog since I began blogging in 2005. The intelligence and sheer quantity of the comments has been incredible, and I am super-grateful for all of the hard work of our volunteer moderators!
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Figure 1. September 13, 2008: The Portlight disaster relief charity is born in the comments of my post, “Ike Makes a Direct Hit on Galveston.” |
The portlight.org charity, the nation’s preeminent disaster relief for disabled and special needs people, got its start in the comments of this blog (see Figure 1). I’ve been plugging (and contributing to) Portlight ever since. Paul Timmons (presslord), who has led Portlight since 2008, has been wonderful to work with, as has Patrick Pearson (Patrap), who was instrumental in getting the Portlight effort rolling in 2008.
Portlight is working around the clock to provide assistance to people with disabilities and disability organizations in the Bahamas, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina for Hurricane Dorian and its aftermath for months and years to come. They have been convening daily disaster planning session, including disability and disaster experts, community leaders, first responders, public health, government and non-government organizations.
Their Disaster Hotline, 1-800-626-4959, has been assisting callers with disabilities in Florida and South Carolina who have been trying to prepare for evacuation and sheltering but are learning that state plans are not in place to accommodate their disability, access, and functional needs. Their Disability Assistance Response Team (DART) and disability and medical equipment and supply resources are immediately available to all disaster impacted people with disabilities and disability organizations.
One of their newest partners is “242 Disability Organization”, serving people with disabilities on the islands of Grand Bahama, Abaco, Eleuthera, Bimini and the other islands within the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. They are working together to assist Bahamians with disabilities and older adults throughout the catastrophic impact and aftermath of Hurricane Dorian.
Please consider supporting Portlight!
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Figure 2. A grateful recipient of a Hurriup.org generator in Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria of 2017. |
Hurriup.org
Another charity founded by members of the WU community that I have contributed to each year is hurriup.org. The charity, founded by Patrick Pearson (Patrap) in the aftermath of 2017’s Hurricane Maria, performs disaster relief in the wake of storms, and provides information about preparing for hurricanes and other natural disasters on their website. In 2017, hurriup.org provided 24 generators to people in need in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. In July 2018, they provided an additional 10 generators to a Doctors Without Borders hospital on the island. A testimonial from this effort:
I don’t have words to thank y’all for this generator. My sister was crying on the phone and my heart is beating so fast because I know this is really important for them. Thanks thanks a lot. She got it and yall make a wish come true. Karynell - Puerto Rico generator recipient
You can donate to hurriup.org through their website or through their GoFundMe campaign for 2019 hurricane relief.
Thanks for thinking of those in need! For those who want to give a targeted donation to the Red Cross for Dorian relief, it is here.
We'll have a new Dorian post in the morning; until then, you can see our most recent post on the storm here.
