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Aftermath of Hurricane Matthew: Helping Returning Evacuees

Hurricane Matthew is now long gone – leaving a path of destruction. Those residents of the Southeastern United States (Florida and the Carolinas) now face clean-up.

Residents want badly to return to their homes so that they can assess damage and begin rebuilding and repairing.

Haiti, once more decimated by a natural disaster, faces unimaginable tragedy, as it looks once more to pick itself up from unfathomable loss. For information as to how to stem a full-blown public health disaster, please visit Doctors Without Borders. At the time of writing, cholera was spreading. Keep abreast of organizations on the ground able to respond to an overwhelming need for basic necessities.

Says Give InKind founder Laura Malcolm:

“It is easy to feel helpless in an emergency. But there is always something to be done to provide support, even when we are far away. We want to empower anyone to help, from anywhere.”

Lori Mullins Ennis who is a coastal resident and a veteran of many hurricanes – now including Hurricane Matthew – underscores the immense power of community.

“Community assistance is imperative. The aftermath on coastal communities is often worse than the hurricane itself. The world sort of moves on as the storm moves away … but flooding is such a big issue for days and weeks after. People are just desperate to get back to their homes and salvage what they can. Giving and service make such a difference.”

Evacuees in temporary housing may have need of shelter. Depending upon the state of their homes, they may be more comfortable in hotels. Underwriting the cost of staying in a hotel is a generous gift, indeed.

Gift certificates to restaurants are also useful. Even if a family is back at home, it is likely that they are cleaning up and the daily grind of shopping and cooking may be logistically complicated (if not impossible.)

As these returning evacuees assess damage, they may need to repair or rebuild parts of their homes. Consider a gift card to a store where they can buy specific necessary supplies.

Above all, stay in touch. Depending upon the power grid and wireless networks, service may be spotty. Still, efforts to stay in touch are a great gift to those in need of temporary assistance. Reaching out can lift people up and out of the frustration and devastation these storms so often deliver.

For updates as to cleanup stay current with Reddit and Twitter.

 


Give InKind does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We have an affiliate relationship with many of the advertisers on our site, and may receive a commission from any products purchased from links in this article. See Terms & Conditions.

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