In the immediate aftermath, local Red Cross volunteers provided emotional and practical help for hundreds of thousands of people and distributed tarpaulins, food, clothing, cooking utensils, hygiene items and bedding to affected communities.
Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI)
The British Red Cross secured £145,000 funding from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for a recovery programme, focusing on Grand Turk, where the British Red Cross is working with TCI Red Cross staff and volunteers. Programme activities include:
- communal sanitation projects in the form of shower and latrine blocks
- repair and upgrade of the prison sewage system
- replacing infrastructure lost in the hurricane and improving organisational ability of the TCI Red Cross to prepare for future hurricanes
- undertaking two in-depth surveys to better understand the needs of a complex community, and advocate on their behalf to local government
- support development of a strong network of key stakeholders to support disaster response in the future.
Emergency relief
Before Hurricane Ike hit, the British Red Cross sent two disaster management experts to the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British overseas territory. During and immediately after the hurricane, they worked with local volunteers to evacuate people, run shelters, organise a central feeding station, transport people to hospital, distribute sandbags to keep out floodwaters and hand out clothing and tarpaulins.
Three more disaster management experts were sent after the hurricane hit, to organise two flights of relief supplies, including:
- 3,100 tarpaulins
- 5,100 jerry cans and mosquito nets
- Water purification tablets for 7,500 people
- 700 stoves, kitchen sets, hygiene sets and shelter kits.
The team worked with local volunteers to distribute the relief supplies in the most-affected areas, including Grand Turk, South Caicos, Salt Cay and Providenciales.
Recovery in other affected islands
In Haiti, Cuba, Jamaica and Bahamas, the Federation and National Societies are carrying out recovery programmes to help people get back on their feet.
The programmes include providing shelter materials, health education and hygiene promotion, malaria and dengue prevention and psychosocial support for people affected by the hurricanes.
Updated December 2009
More about the Caribbean Hurricane Appeal
Why we needed your help
Blog from Turks and Caicos Islands
A donation from our Disaster Fund was made in response to this crisis. Contributions to the Disaster Fund will not be used directly in response to this disaster, but will be used in response to other emergencies in the future. |
