With emergency medical aid pre-positioned along the East Coast, Direct Relief is monitoring Tropical Storm Arthur as it moves toward North Carolina’s coast, expected to reach hurricane status by early morning Friday.

The team today notified 19 health center and clinic partners in three states (North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia) that additional emergency medical supplies are stockpiled at Direct Relief’s warehouse and are ready to ship at request in the event of an emergency.

Additionally, a Hurricane Preparedness Pack is on standby in the immediate warning area at the Broad Street Clinic Foundation in Morehead City, N.C., with two other packs located just outside the current predicted trajectory.

Each pack contains enough critical medicines and supplies to treat 100 people for 72 hours in the immediate aftermath of an emergency. The packs are pre-positioned in at-risk communities at the start of hurricane season, June 1.

Donate here to support Direct Relief’s emergency preparedness and response efforts. $20 can ensure that one person has access to the medical aid they need immediately after a disaster strikes.

Click here to view Direct Relief’s hurricane map, which shows the locations of the preparedness packs in relation to the live weather feed and learn more about the Hurricane Preparedness Program.