THE BAHAMAS HURRICANE RELIEF UPDATE MARCH 2022
TOTAL IMPACT Current Activities TOTAL IMPACT Our amazing team in The Bahamas has entered into the final month of project. continue to work hard to provide vital support in the lagging housing recovery LAUR They in Great Abaco. Since November 2021, when this third phase of our Hurricane 720 Relief Program started, we have supported twenty households. Respectively, VOLUNTEERS A/DEL Dorian LIVES IMPACTED this work has included providing vital response work to help families on their road 2,467 to recovery, rebuilding the homes interior and providing essential repairs and TA VOLUNTEERS rebuild of roofs. 14,835 VOLUNTEER DAYS VOLUNTEER DAYS
2,393
LIVES IMPACTED JOBS COMPLETED
Work on the roof rebuild of Lapetra S.’s home is in its final stages, with the trusses complete and final pieces of plywood going up. As the team enters the final stage of the project, they look forward to helping homeowners, like Lapetra S., return to a safe home.
SCHOOLmucking IN PROGRESS Hurricane Shutters Photos: (Top) Volunteers and gutting a home; (Left) Tree We are committed to rebuilding disaster-resilient homes that are fortified and ROOFS REPAIRED removal ready should a future disaster hit the area, helping the communities of Great Abaco become stronger in the face of disasters.
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The team added a new scope of work: hurricane shutters. The household equivalent of "battening down the hatches" on a ship, the shutters equip homeowners with a proven strategy fortifying their home's defenses before a storm hits. So far, we have equipped eight homes with this important solution and the team is currently working on fitting additional homes with shutters. Take a look at this short video to hear from the team on the importance of hurricane shutters.
Photos: (Top) LaPetra S.’s roof rebuild; (Left) Volunteers working on repairing Rochelle B.’s home
allhandsandhearts.org
Disaster Profile In September 2019, Hurricane Dorian made landfall as a Category 5 storm in The Bahamas with wind speeds in excess of 185 mph, lashing the Bahamian islands of Abaco (pop. ~17,200) and Grand Bahama (pop. ~51,000). Dorian’s traveling speed slowed to 1 mph over Grand Bahama, prolonging the island’s exposure to a life-threatening storm surge of 18-23 feet above normal tide levels. Over 76,000 people were affected, and 10,000 children were displaced from schools. Dorian is the strongest hurricane on record for The Bahamas and tied a record for the strongest Atlantic hurricane to make landfall.
Our Work
Photo: Completed roof rebuild
We have been supporting the communities of Great Abaco since Hurricane Dorian devastated the island in 2019. In addition to clearing hurricane wreckage and putting roofs on homes, to date we have reconstructed eight school campuses culminating with the completion of Little Darlings Academy in the summer of 2021. 1,300 students have been provided with a safe, disaster-resilient and engaging places to learn and thrive. The immense support from The TK Foundation this fall has enabled us to remain in the community, where we are now intensifying our focus to the lagging housing recovery. Our decision was two-fold: 1) schools have been greatly supported by the government and non-government organizations, whereas home recovery had been neglected, and 2) Bahamian government funds have been depleted and the cost of home repairs is not commensurate with local salary. For more than two years, many homeowners have not been able to return home.
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.
Our Partners in The Bahamas
We have earned a 4-star rating by Charity Navigator for the eighth year in a row. This year only six percent of rated nonprofits received this distinction for financial and operational efficiency.
info@allhandsandhearts.org