The 2018 Atlantic hurricane season mercifully ended today.

Hopefully you were not among those severely impacted by the most destructive storms - Michael and Florence.  However, millions were left homeless or without power for weeks. Many may never return home.

Can you imagine losing everything? What if you couldn’t get to a pharmacy for a critically-needed prescription? Or to a store for basic health supplies? The fear and loss many residents experienced before, during, and after these events is unfathomable.

However, because of your support of MAP International, many of them now know someone cares about their well-being, someone they have never met. It is because of you, MAP was able to apply its years of experience in disaster relief and provide a ray of hope amidst such despair.

(Photo: Survivors of the Fuego Volcano eruption fill the church in Escintia, Guatemala)

As parishioners filed out of the morning church service in Escuintla, Guatemala, on a warm June day, some were complaining. Why did they have to keep sitting on plastic chairs?

On the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria's devastating landfall in Puerto Rico, MAP International’s Disaster Response Team was once again helping people in need following a hurricane. The significance of the moment was not lost on the team as they delivered over 2,000 Disaster Health Kits (DHK) and other health supplies to people in need in Lumberton, NC.

Many of the lessons MAP learned from our work for Hurricane Maria have been applied to our response to Florence: 

One year ago today, Hurricane Irma made landfall on Cudjoe Key, Florida as a Category 4 storm with 130 mph winds. As it barreled across the Florida Keys and into the Gulf of Mexico, residents fled Irma's dangerous path before it once again made landfall on Marco Island. Homes were destroyed, and millions were left without power as the hurricane continued up the state and into Georgia.

MAP provided thousands of its signature Disaster Health Kits (DHK) to affected residents in both states. DHKs provide essential items to help prevent the spread of disease. Each kit is designed to help meet the needs of one person residing in a shelter for one week.

Senior Partnership Development Officer, Kipp Branch was on the ground one year ago assisting families affected by Irma.

In this interview, Kipp describes how MAP prepares in advance for disasters and then acts immediately to help people in need.

When Hurricane Harvey slammed into Houston one year ago, residents of the fourth most populous state in the U.S. had little idea they would soon make history. Harvey was a Category 4 storm that caused $125 billion in damage and is the second largest natural disaster in US history behind Hurricane Katrina.

Overnight, thousands of lives were upended when over four feet of rain fell on the area. Disastrous flooding forced 37,000 people out of their homes and into shelters. For those living in shelters, MAP International provided Disaster Health Kits (DHK) to serve those in need.

In the aftermath of the storm, lives were torn apart. Flood waters, mold and loose debris posed serious health threats for many people affected by this tragedy.

The MAP Disaster Health Kit is a simple, yet dramatic product for people living in the most desperate of conditions. 

Described as a perfect 'measure of dignity' by people who have lost everything in natural disasters, MAP's signature Disaster Health Kits (DHK) contain antiseptic wipes, soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste and other essential items. 

MAP's partner ANERA, the American Near East Refugee Aid organization, has found another creative use for the disaster health kit. ANERA recently shared the following story about how women and girls living in refugee camps are being trained in disease prevention and hygiene awareness: 

In the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon lies Burj El Barajneh; the most overpopulated Palestinian refugee camp in the city and home to more than 17,000 registered refugees; all living within a mere 1 square kilometer area…

You may never meet Dr. Jose Amezquita, unless you are in desperate need of medical care in Guatemala.

Dr. Amezquita works closely with MAP International’s partner, Vine International, who shared this story with us:

On Saturdays, after a week of work at his office, Dr. Amezquita opens his home as a clinic to patients who have no money to pay for medical care. 

All of the supplies and medicines he dispenses to his patients are made possible because of you and your generous support of MAP International.

Unfortunately, Dr Amezquita’s home is near Alotenango, a small community near the Fuego volcanic eruption that affected thousands of lives earlier this month.

Sadly, the tragic news from aftermath of the Guatemala Fuego volcano continues.

News reports indicate that 109 people have died as a result of the eruption. Hundreds of people are still missing and presumed dead. After two eruptions in three days, more than 12,000 people have been evacuated. The entire village of El Rodeo was covered by a river of boiling lava and ash.

A river of boiling volcanic lava and ash overwhelmed communities 30 miles outside Guatemala City, Guatemala, Sunday displacing thousands of people from their homes and leaving 1.7 million people at risk for respiratory illness and other short and long term illness.

The Fuego volcano is one of the most active in Latin America. Tragically, this eruption is Guatemala's deadliest such event in more than a century.

As of June 5, 69 deaths have been confirmed. Many are still missing and presumed buried in the ash. Thousands have been injured and burned.

For the people of Puerto Rico and Texas, the chance of any hurricane threat seems daunting. So many communities are still recovering from Maria and Harvey. Now this week, NOAA has released its predictions for 2018:

NOAA’s forecasters predict 10 to 16 named storms, of which five to nine could become hurricanes, including one to four major hurricanes.

One is too many for the hundreds of thousands of lives torn apart last fall. Thanks to thousands of MAP donors and supporters who helped send Disaster Health Kits and medicines, many were provided a ray of hope in the most desperate of conditions.