August 30, 2017 - UPDATE - IRT is shipping more than $47,000 in ready-to-eat meals to on-site partners in Victoria, Texas to feed families residing in shelters who have lost everything due to Hurricane Harvey. The shipment includes more than 4,600 meals on 8 pallets. We are working with USANA True Health Foundation and Convoy of Hope to get this necessary food aid to the people who need it most in the face of this unprecedented disaster.
August 26, 2017 - San Diego-based International Relief Teams (IRT) is sending relief aid to support those affected by Hurricane Harvey. The category 4 storm is the largest to hit the United States in 12 years and is expected to inflict major damage along the Texas coastline. The governor of Texas, Greg Abbot, said this storm is a “very complex and dangerous hurricane” and will cause “record-setting flooding in multiple regions of the state.” More than 17 million people live in the path of the storm.
As an initial response, IRT is partnering with MAP International to provide evacuees from areas in Texas hard hit by the storm with personal hygiene kits. More than 1,200 kits will be delivered early next week to on-site partner Convoy of Hope, who have pre-deployed a disaster assessment team to Texas.
“IRT is continuing to monitor the storm and correspond with our on-site partners to evaluate further needs of displaced families,” said IRT Executive Director Barry La Forgia. “From decades of providing relief in the event of disasters around the globe, we know the effects of a major storm like this can have a devastating, life-changing impact on low-income, elderly, and disabled people for many years after the fact. It’s important to remember the families who cannot recover on their own from disasters and need our help to get back on their feet.”
IRT has more than 29 years of experience in assisting victims of disasters, both nationally and internationally. During its history, IRT has delivered more than $343 million in humanitarian aid to those in desperate need. IRT provided aid following Superstorm Sandy in New Jersey from 2012-2016, following Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi from 2005-2011, and is continuing to send construction volunteer teams to Louisiana to repair homes following the 2016 floods.
International Relief Teams alleviates the suffering caused by poverty and disaster around the globe, from the forgotten corners of the world to right here at home, by sending volunteer teams and medical supplies to make immediate change for the world’s most vulnerable people. For more information visit: http://www.irteams.org. Also see us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
