GUATEMALA HURRICANE RELIEF UPDATE JUNE 2021
IMPACT OF HURRICANES ETA & IOTA Alta Verapaz, Guatemala
447
SCHOOLS AFFECTED
311,317
PEOPLE EVACUATED
82,820 8,964
HOMES DAMAGED HOMES AT RISK
Current Activities Our Guatemala Hurricane Relief Program is now officially open and our first cohort of DM12 volunteers arrived on May 29. Following their mandatory quarantine period, in which the team has been focusing on DM12 training, cultural orientations and continued base improvements, everyone is excited to get started on the construction sites in early June. The program will focus on the ground-up construction of a community center in Sesajal, San Pedro Carchá, with the associated water, sanitation and hygiene (WaSH) facilities, which include latrines, rainwater catchment and water storage. We will also construct additional rainwater catchment and storage stations in a nearby community of Seraxqen, Chisec, to increase access to water. This will be our first ever relief program in Guatemala, and we are incredibly pleased to be able to expand our international reach and extend our support to the affected communities of Sesajal and Seraxqen.
Volunteer Spotlight "[I'm looking forward to] meeting the community, learning about their story and seeing with our own eyes what's the impact of our work and how we contribute bringing back their lives before the disaster." - Gabi, Volunteer
Photos: (top) flood damage in the Sesajal community (left) AHAH staff arriving into Guatemala!
Learn about our programs at
allhandsandhearts.org
Disaster Profile In November 2020, Hurricane Eta and Hurricane Iota, both Category 4 storms, devastated communities across Central America. First, Hurricane Eta struck on November 3 and slowly moved across northern Nicaragua and into eastern Honduras, before continuing its path into northeastern Guatemala and the Caribbean. Just 15 miles away from Eta’s landfall, Iota then struck on November 17 and followed a similar path. Both storms led to significant flooding and landslides across the region, impacting millions of people. Alta Verapaz was one of the hardest hit regions in Guatemala. Sesajal and Seraxqen are suffering from a severe lack of suitable WaSH infrastructure, relying on water sources that were compromised by the floods after Eta and Iota.
Our Work All Hands and Hearts launched a remote assessment immediately after the Hurricanes in November 2020. Based on our findings and the varying COVID-19 situation in the region, we transitioned to a ground assessment in Guatemala at the end of January 2021 to explore how we could contribute to the recovery effort. Our relief program will focus on the ground-up construction of a community center in Sesajal, San Pedro Carchá, with the associated WaSH facilities, including latrines, rainwater catchment and water storage. We will also construct additional rainwater catchment and storage stations in the nearby community of Seraxqen, Chisec, to increase access to clean water. If you’re interested in supporting this program, please donate today. All donations up to $100,000 will be matched dollar for dollar, so you can double your impact!.
About All Hands and Hearts We effectively and efficiently address the immediate and long-term needs of communities impacted by natural disasters. We communicate directly with local leaders and community members and then deploy our unique model of engaging volunteers to enable direct impact, helping to build safer, more resilient schools, homes and infrastructure. Photos: (top) our staff team meeting with local community members, (middle) flood damage from Eta and Iota, (bottom) community members in Sesajal.
We have earned a 4-star rating by Charity Navigator for the seventh year in a row. This year only seven percent of rated nonprofits received this distinction for financial and operational efficiency.
info@allhandsandhearts.org