Direct Relief is assembling needed medical aid for Guatemala and El Salvador to assist people injured in and displaced by flooding caused by Tropical Storm Agatha and the eruption of Pacaya Volcano.

An initial consignment of antibiotics, antifungal agents, and medicines to treat respiratory conditions is being prepared to send to Caritas de Guatemala, a trusted partner that has been active in emergency response and reconstruction efforts in the country since Hurricane Stan in 2005. In El Salvador, longtime partner FUSAL has requested personal care items for families displaced by flooding there.

Direct Relief’s emergency response team has been corresponding with partners on the ground providing medical care and emergency assistance. One partner has reported that in Chimaltenango, Guatemala, many families have lost everything, including their homes and their crops. Though clean up has begun, the airport there is closed to cargo traffic in the next few days, roads are blocked with mudflows, and bridges have been damaged, making transportation difficult.

Direct Relief is preparing medical aid shipments so they can be dispatched immediately on news of open delivery channels.