Samaritan’s Purse responds to victims in Grenada impacted by Hurricane Beryl

BOONE, N.C. ( QUEEN CITY NEWS ) – Disaster response specialists from North Carolina-based Samaritan’s Purse arrived in Grenada Tuesday to help victims of Hurricane Beryl.

The team of 13 volunteers brought 24 tons of supplies with them on a cargo plane.

Kaitlyn Josten, assistant director of marketing and media with Samaritan’s Purse, is one of the team members. She said they were watching the storm develop well before it made landfall.

“As the storm was hitting the area, we began to prepare the cargo load, get the supplies down to Greensboro, where our cargo plane is loaded, so that we were able to take off with that cargo and 13 disaster responders less than 24 hours after the storm hit,” she said.

Josten said time is of the essence when people have lost their access to shelter, water and medical care.

“Speed is so critical after a disaster. If you don’t have clean water, then getting that weeks later does it doesn’t provide that much relief,” she said. “The faster we can get here, the more people we can help.”

Josten said the team spent the hours after landing unloading the pallets of supplies.

The cargo includes 600 rolls of shelter tarp, 3,000 solar-powered lights and a large water desalinator with 300 collapsable water cans.

Local partners and church leaders in the Caribbean will help distribute the items to some of the hardest-hit locations.

“It’s incredible to work with the local partners,” Josten said. “They know the area, they have connections, they know the ferry schedule to get from one island to another. They have all of those local connections. So we really rely on the local church wherever we go to be able to respond and respond well within that cultural context.”

There is no set return date for the team, but Josten said they will stay in the region to offer as much relief as possible.

Josten said the best way North Carolinians can support their efforts is to donate to Samaritan’s Purse and keep the team in their prayers.

Samaritan’s Purse works with local partners in more than 100 countries.

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