Hurricane Isaac Disaster Aid Arrives to Help Gulf Coast Families

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Within hours of Hurricane Isaac's landfall on August 28, AmeriCares first shipment of emergency aid will arrive to help displaced Gulf Coast families - 7 years to the day that Hurricane Katrina devastated the region. Additional medical aid and a relief team are being readied to deploy, if needed, to help hard-hit communities. The monstrous, Category 1 hurricane made landfall southeast of New Orleans, taking down trees and power lines as it unleashed torrential rains, storm surges, and damaging 80+ mph winds. As the slow-moving giant continues to pound the Gulf Coast, up to 20 inches of rain may fall in some areas, with massive flooding and widespread power outages reported across the region. A state of emergency has been declared in Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi as thousands evacuated their homes for safety. The relief shipment, including hundreds of household clean-up kits, mops, and family emergency kits (tote bags stocked with soap, shampoo, toothbrushes and other personal care items), was rushed to the Salvation Army in Gulfport, MS, to be distributed to families displaced by the storm. Our emergency response team remains in close contact with Gulf Coast partners and will prepare additional shipments as needs arise. In the meantime, our stock of targeted medicines and supplies is prepositioned for immediate shipment from our Stamford, CT warehouse. Support AmeriCares relief efforts as we respond to Hurricane Isaac >> The storm left a trail of suffering in Haiti on August 24-25, damaging hundreds of homes and killing 19. Our Haiti team delivered emergency kits to help families in the remote mountain communities of Thoman and Gwos Chaval -- two areas that sustained severe storm damage. The team continues to meet with partners to discuss emergency response needs, while preparing for a potential spike in cholera due to flooding and poor sanitation AmeriCares has a long history responding to emergencies along the Gulf Coast, meeting the health needs of survivors after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Hurricane Ike in 2008 and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010. AmeriCares has provided medical relief and humanitarian assistance to millions affected by natural and man-made disasters for 30 years, including earthquakes in Haiti, Chile, Pakistan and Japan, and the 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia. So far this year in the U.S., AmeriCares has responded to tornadoes in Kentucky and Indiana, wildfires in Colorado, storms and power outages in the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest and flooding in Minnesota.