Direct Relief has delivered 490 shipments of requested medical aid to 48 U.S. states and territories and 15 countries worldwide over the past seven days, including emergency response shipments to the Caribbean for Hurricane Beryl response and several wildfires in California, including near Direct Relief’s headquarters in Santa Barbara.

The shipments contained 2.3 million defined daily doses of medication and supplies, including vitamins, rare disease therapies insulin, pain management medications, and more.

Wildfires burn across california and Hurricane aftermath

Over a dozen wildfires are currently active in California, the largest of which is the Lake Fire in Santa Barbara County, which has burned over 36,000 acres. The fires come amid a record-setting heat wave, leaving vulnerable populations, especially those who are unhoused or that suffer from respiratory illnesses, exposed to potential complications due to these multiple factors.

In addition to supporting local partners in the midst of the fires, Direct Relief set up multiple distribution points throughout Santa Barbara County to make over 1,000 3M-made N95 respirators available to the local community.

Direct Relief is in touch with the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services and local safety net clinics to assess needs. To address power outages, Direct Relief’s Power for Health program has equipped several health clinics with solar-powered resilient power systems.

Direct Relief’s response to Hurricane Beryl is ongoing across the Caribbean and Texas. The storm, which was the earliest Category 5 storm on record, and which made landfall in Texas as a Category 1 hurricane, has left a path of destruction, especially on Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. About 1 million people in Texas are currently without power.

Direct Relief prepositioned Hurricane Prep Packs in Texas, which can serve one hundred people for 3 days. At least one of the packs was used by a clinic just north of Houston. Requested hygiene kits have also been sent to four Texas clinics.

In the Caribbean, Direct Relief has sent Hurricane Prep Packs, Emergency Packs, hygiene kits, and more requested aid, including medicines, medical tents, patient beds, and oral rehydration salts, to partners in Grenada, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Jamaica. Direct Relief has allocated $250,000 from the Caribbean Resiliency Fund to further address recovery efforts.

Operational Snapshot

WORLDWIDE

Over the last week, Direct Relief shipped more than 1.7 million defined daily doses of medication outside the U.S.

Countries that received medical aid over the past week included:

UNITED STATES

Direct Relief delivered 465 shipments containing 4.6 tons of medications during the past seven days to organizations, including the following:

YEAR TO DATE

Since January 1, 2024, Direct Relief has delivered 12,900 shipments to 1,976 partner organizations in 54 U.S. states and territories and 79 countries.

These shipments contained 230.3 million defined daily doses of medication valued at $834.7 million (wholesale) and totaling over 3 million pounds.

IN THE NEWS

• How to help: Hurricane Beryl – Fidelity Charitable
• Hurricane Beryl: How to contribute to relief efforts – Local 10
• Hurricane Beryl – Discover Highly-Rate Charities – Charity Navigator
• Direct Relief to distribute free N95 masks in Santa Ynez Valley as Lake Fire grows to more than 20,000 acres – KEYT
• Want to help those who have been hit by Hurricane Beryl? Here’s what you can do – Fort Worth S-T
• Nonprofits Also Corralling Donations After Hurricane Beryl – St. Thomas Source
• Hurricane Season Just Got Real – Surfline
• Here’s How to Help the Hurricane Victims in the Caribbean – The New York Times
• Hurricane Beryl Has Devastated the Caribbean. Here’s How You Can Help Relief Efforts – TIME
• Help Hurricane Beryl Relief Efforts by Donating to These Organizations – Travel and Leisure
• How to help Hurricane Beryl victims – CNN
• Direct Relief to distribute free N95 masks in Santa Ynez Valley as Lake Fire grows to more than 20,000 acres – KEYT
• Fire concerns bring Santa Ynez Valley residents out to get free masks and view maps – KEYT
• Lake Fire Informational Resources and N95 Masks Available at Tribal Hall on Santa Ynez Reservation – Santa Barbara Independent
• Lake fire information, N95 masks available to public at Chumash tribal hall – Santa Ynez Valley News