American Red Cross Prepares for Hurricane Beryl as Aid Rushes to Caribbean Islands

American Red Cross disaster teams are preparing for a Hurricane Beryl landfall in Texas next week as Red Cross societies across the Caribbean rush to provide aid in the wake of Beryl's devastation.

Current projections show the storm going into Texas early next week where thousands of people may need emergency shelter.The risk is growing for strong winds, heavy rain and storm surge in southern Texas this weekend. Rip currents could cause life-threatening conditions all along the Gulf Coast.

In the Caribbean, Beryl's life-threatening rains and winds have severely impacted the most vulnerable populations[1] in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Dominica and Barbados, and is the strongest hurricane to hit Jamaica in more than a decade. Today the storm is hitting the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico.

AMERICAN RED CROSS GETSREADY We are rushing final preparations to help tens of thousands of people in the path of Hurricane Beryl as the storm takes aim at the Gulf Coast of the United States. Hundreds of trained disaster workers and truckloads of relief supplies, along with numerous emergency response vehicles (ERVs) are being deployed over the holiday weekend to potential impact areas.

We are also coordinating with local community partners and emergency responders to support evacuation centers for people who may need to seek shelter.

People should pay attention to Beryl and monitor their local weather. Find out how to get ready for the storm here.

INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE In the Caribbean, Beryl's life-threatening rains and winds have severely impacted the most vulnerable populations [2] in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Dominica and Barbados, and is the strongest hurricane to hit Jamaica in more than a decade. Today the storm is hitting the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico.

There is a critical need for safe shelter and basic services.Local Red Cross teams face significant challenges getting into the affected areas to provide life-saving assistance. More volunteers are enroute to help.

Other priorities include distributing relief items, getting communication systems back up and running, and re-establishing power and telecommunication services. Hygiene kits, cleaning kits, tool kits, kitchen sets, tarpaulins, blankets and mosquito nets have already been dispatched to the hardest hit islands to meet the immediate needs of the affected population.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is playing a critical role in coordinating the response with local Red Cross societies. There is an urgent need for a combined humanitarian response effort across the islands. The American Red Cross remains in close contact with Red Cross and Red Crescent network partners and is ready to assist as requested for areas outside of the U.S.

FINDING LOVED ONES

If you are concerned about a United States citizen who is traveling or living abroad, contact the US State Department Office of Overseas Citizens Services and Crisis Management at 1-888-407-4747 or online at: https://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/emergencies.html.

If you are searching for a loved one who is not a United States citizen, submit an inquiry form on our website: https://www.redcross.org/contact-us/international-reconnecting-families-inquiry-form.html

If you live in a country other than United States, visit the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) online for information about what services the ICRC and your local Red Cross or Red Crescent Society can provide.

If you live in the United States and are seeking information about someone you've been unable to contact due to a recent disaster, visit the American Red Cross Contact and Locate Loved Ones page to search for your loved one. This information is also available in Spanish.

Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) Through the generosity of our American Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and Disaster Responder members, the American Red Cross is prepared before disaster strikes. ADGP and Disaster Responder members help secure a reliable funding base for disaster relief services that enables the Red Cross to respond immediately, meeting the needs of individuals and families affected by disaster, regardless of cost.

ADGP $1M Members: Amazon; American Airlines; Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Bank of America; Caterpillar Foundation; CMA CGM Foundation; Costco Wholesale; Delta Air Lines; Elevance Health Foundation; Enterprise Mobility Foundation; FedEx; Lilly Endowment Inc.; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; McDonald's Corporation; Merck; Microsoft; Nationwide Foundation; The Pfizer Foundation; The Starbucks Foundation; State Farm; Takeda; Truist Foundation; VSP Vision; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; Wells Fargo

ADGP $500k Members: Altria Group; American Express; Aon; Bread Financial; Capital One; Chick-fil-A; Citi Foundation; The Clorox Company; Danaher Foundation; Darden Foundation; Delta Dental; DHL Supply Chain; DraftKings; Edison International; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Ford Motor Company Fund; Fox Corporation; General Motors; Google.org; HCA Healthcare; The Home Depot Foundation; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; Kaiser Permanente; The Kraft Heinz Company Foundation; The Kroger Co. Foundation; Liberty Mutual Insurance; Mastercard; Mondelēz International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; Paul Davis Restoration; PayPal; PepsiCo Foundation; PetSmart Charities; Salesforce; Southeastern Grocers Gives Foundation & Southeastern Grocers, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie; Stryker; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; UPS; USAA; U.S. Bank Foundation; Visa Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; The Wawa Foundation; Wesco

Disaster Responder Members: The 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe; The AES Corporation; ALDI; American Tire Distributors; American Water Charitable Foundation; Ameriprise Financial; Assurant; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; Avangrid Foundation; Barclays; Bath & Body Works; Big 5 Sporting Goods; Build-A-Bear Foundation; CarMax; CDW; Charles Schwab Foundation; Choice Hotels International; Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; The Coca-Cola Foundation; The Deluxe Foundation; The DICK'S Sporting Goods Foundation; Discover; Dollar General; Dollar Tree and Family Dollar; Duke Energy; Equitable; FirstEnergy Corporation; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation, LLC; Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation; HP Foundation; International Paper; Invitation Homes; Keurig Dr Pepper; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; L'Oréal; The Labcorp Charitable Foundation; Lenovo Foundation; LHC Group; LKQ; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Macy's, Inc.; Major League Baseball; Marathon Petroleum Corporation; Martin Marietta; Masco; Mattress Firm; McKesson Foundation; MetLife Foundation; The Middleby Corporation; Neiman Marcus Group; NextEra Energy, Inc.; Norfolk Southern; Northrop Grumman Foundation; Northwestern Mutual; Novartis; Old Dominion Freight Line; Pacific Life Foundation; Phillips 66; Prudential; Raymond James; RBC Foundation USA; Reckitt; Reliance, Inc.; Reynolds American Inc.; RTX; Ryder System, Inc.; Santander; Security Finance's Lending Hand Foundation; ServiceNow; Southwest Airlines; Stanley Black & Decker; Tata Consultancy Services; U-Haul International; Ulta Beauty; U.S. Foods; Yum! Brands; Zurich.

[1] Among the vulnerable populations, UNICEF estimates that winds, torrential rains, and flash flooding could put at least 3 million children in the Caribbean at risk: https://www.unicef.org/lac/en/press-releases/at-least-3-million-children-at-risk-as-hurricane-beryl-hits-caribbean

[2] Among the vulnerable populations, UNICEF estimates that winds, torrential rains, and flash flooding could put at least 3 million children in the Caribbean at risk: https://www.unicef.org/lac/en/press-releases/at-least-3-million-children-at-risk-as-hurricane-beryl-hits-caribbean

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