USVI HURRICANE UPDATE: ST. THOMAS & ST. JOHN (FEBRUARY 2019) CURRENT ACTIVITIES (RESPONSE & RECOVERY) Volunteers on St. John and St. Thomas continue to work hard to bring relief in the aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and Maria. We’re transitioning into recovery phase to bring lasting strength back to the islands. St. John ● Volunteers on St. John further their recovery efforts with five rebuild sites currently underway ● Over 250 response sites have been completed
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AHAH volunteers have completed 2 more rebuild sites (5 total on St. John)
St. Thomas ● Volunteers continue work to repair and replace damaged and destroyed roofs throughout the island ● At the Youth Development Academy, where young adults can learn martial arts and utilize a music studio, AHAH volunteers have completed the site, and the studio will open shortly
Youth Development Academy (YDA) continues to teach students martial arts, and they hope to fully open the music studio within the next few weeks. Left: A few months into the construction at YDA with all of the wall framing up Right: Walls, floors, and sound insulation are completed at YDA (including a fresh coat of paint)!
Left: Volunteers removing debris from a hill site Top: AHAH Volunteers sawing wood Right: Site Supervisor Brit assessing progress
OUR IMPACT
7,263
PEOPLE IMPACTED
1,424
JOBS COMPLETED
1,549
VOLUNTEERS
31,441
VOLUNTEER DAYS
DISASTER PROFILE On September 6, 2017 Hurricane Irma slammed into the US Virgin Islands as a Category 5 storm, with record wind speed of 200 mph. The islands suffered severe wind and flood damage, reducing many areas to rubble. Less than two weeks later, Hurricane Maria struck the islands on September 20 as a Category 4 storm and damaged several community facilities and individual homes. The storms have severely affected the community, tourism, and local economy.
OUR WORK Thanks to critical support from partners like Norwegian Cruise Lines and Island Spirit Fund, donors, local community, and volunteers from around the world, All Hands and Hearts - Smart Response has run an impactful program on St. Thomas since September 27th, 2017 and St. John since February 16th, 2018. We have responded to the community’s needs with debris removal, mucking and gutting, mold sanitization, and now full rebuilds for homes and schools.
OUR MISSION To effectively and efficiently address the immediate and long-term needs of communities impacted by natural disasters. By listening to local people, and deploying a unique model of engaging volunteers to enable direct impact, we rebuild safe, resilient schools, homes and other community infrastructure.
OUR USVI PARTNERS
5 YEARS IN A ROW! Only 10% of charities have received at least 5 consecutive 4-star ratings. This means All Hands and Hearts outperforms most of the other 1.5 million charities in America in operational and financial efficiency.
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For additional information: Ethan C. Yake, Chief Partnership Officer ethan@allhandsandhearts.org or (518) 669-7147 www.allhandsandhearts.org