How to Help Those Impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton
Our beautiful state of Florida, as well as our neighboring states, were recently struck by two powerful hurricanes within the span of 2 weeks, leaving catastrophic damage in their wake.
Hurricane Helene, a Category 4 storm, hit the Big Bend region with winds of 140 mph, tearing apart homes, power lines, and businesses. The flooding and wind damage left tens of thousands of residents displaced. Recovery efforts were still underway when Hurricane Milton made landfall, compounding the devastation. As a Category 4 hurricane, Milton brought life-threatening storm surges and heavy rains to an already devastated Gulf Coast, knocking out power to millions and destroying critical infrastructure across the state.
These storms hitting one after the other has significantly challenged Florida’s ability to respond quickly. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and local agencies are working on providing relief to the affected areas as quickly as possible, but with overwhelmed resources and damaged infrastructure, aid has been delayed in some areas. Beyond physical damage, many families are being faced with emotional and financial devastation, having lost homes, jobs, and loved ones to these forceful storms.
How You Can Help
The path to recovery for the hurricane-affected communities will be long and challenging, but you can help make a difference. Numerous organizations are providing essential aid, from distributing food and water to those in need, helping families rebuild their lives, assisting local animal shelters and more. If you're looking to support the relief efforts, here are some trustworthy organizations accepting donations:
BStrong by Bethenny Frankel: BStrong is providing emergency assistance to people in crisis by being on the ground conducting distributions out of Perry, Florida and Asheville, North Carolina. This includes water, food, cleaning supplies, tarps, pet supplies, hygiene supplies, and more. They’re also making smaller aid runs by vehicle and helicopter to rural zones and cut-off communities.
The Humane Society of the United States: The Humane Society’s Animal Rescue Team is ready to assist local animal shelters and provide emergency care and rescue in the wake of Hurricane Milton, while still caring for animals that were impacted by Hurricane Helene.
American Red Cross: The American Red Cross is working tirelessly in Florida, the Carolinas, Georgia and Tennessee to provide shelter, food, water, relief supplies and comfort to those still coping with the unimaginable destruction left behind by Hurricane Helene and Milton.
Salvation Army: The Salvation Army is responding to this historic season by providing emergency aid, food, drinks, emotional and spiritual care, and critical supplies to survivors and rescue workers in five states.
Your support can be life-changing for those impacted by these disasters. Consider donating to one of the many relief organizations working tirelessly in Florida and throughout the Southeastern United States. Every contribution, whether big or small, helps provide shelter, food, medical care, and hope to those who need it most. Together, we can help rebuild lives and communities.
Donating to these organizations ensures that relief continues to reach the hardest-hit regions, where residents are still facing long-term recovery. Please visit the donation pages of these relief funds and give what you can to help Florida get back on its feet.