Today, November 15, 2024, marks 50 days since Hurricane Helene roared onshore as a Category 4 storm, the strongest since 1851 to hit the Big Bend area along the Gulf Coast of Florida. It cut a broad path of devastation across the state and into Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia, leaving millions without power and potable water, with homes and businesses severely damaged or completely destroyed. The number of fatalities sits at 230, making Helene the deadliest mainland hurricane since Katrina in 2005.
Hurricane Milton, a Category 3 storm, made landfall at Siesta Key, a barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico, just off the coast of Sarasota, Florida. It followed Helene by just 13 days. The storm weakened quickly as it crossed the state and entered the Atlantic Ocean, but not before causing severe flooding and spawning a deadly tornado outbreak. As of October 21, 2024, Milton’s death toll totaled 32 lives lost in Florida, and 3 in Mexico. Many people were once again trapped in their homes by flash flooding, facing high temperatures in the midst of lengthy power outages, and cut off from distribution of food and water.
The Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies’ (The Partnership) Disability and Disaster Hotline has actively responded throughout this 50-day period to over 360 requests for assistance, representing more than 500 people with disabilities and their loved ones in states impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The majority of needs continue to come from western North Carolina and Florida, where response operations are still ongoing. A major need is housing of any kind, but especially accessible housing. We’re planning for a long and arduous recovery that will take years.
Disability-led Response Update: Hurricanes Helene and Milton
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Posted: November 15, 2024 by admin
Today, November 15, 2024, marks 50 days since Hurricane Helene roared onshore as a Category 4 storm, the strongest since 1851 to hit the Big Bend area along the Gulf Coast of Florida. It cut a broad path of devastation across the state and into Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia, leaving millions without power and potable water, with homes and businesses severely damaged or completely destroyed. The number of fatalities sits at 230, making Helene the deadliest mainland hurricane since Katrina in 2005.
Hurricane Milton, a Category 3 storm, made landfall at Siesta Key, a barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico, just off the coast of Sarasota, Florida. It followed Helene by just 13 days. The storm weakened quickly as it crossed the state and entered the Atlantic Ocean, but not before causing severe flooding and spawning a deadly tornado outbreak. As of October 21, 2024, Milton’s death toll totaled 32 lives lost in Florida, and 3 in Mexico. Many people were once again trapped in their homes by flash flooding, facing high temperatures in the midst of lengthy power outages, and cut off from distribution of food and water.
The Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies’ (The Partnership) Disability and Disaster Hotline has actively responded throughout this 50-day period to over 360 requests for assistance, representing more than 500 people with disabilities and their loved ones in states impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The majority of needs continue to come from western North Carolina and Florida, where response operations are still ongoing. A major need is housing of any kind, but especially accessible housing. We’re planning for a long and arduous recovery that will take years.
The Disability and Disaster Hotline continues to help with meeting essential needs for food, water, access to information and referral resources, and connecting callers to their local Centers for Independent Living and other disability and aging resources. In collaboration with these and other local partners, we will also continue to assist with pressing recovery needs:
As shelters close and disaster survivors are expected to find temporary or transitional housing options, or landlords place undue hardships on renters, we are advocating with our partners at the local, state, and federal level for immediate solutions.
The Partnership is committed to supporting the disability and aging networks in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee with technical assistance and resource coordination as they respond to the needs of the disability and aging communities in their state. We’ve been here since Day One, and we’ll be here through the challenges to come in long-term recovery.
We extend our deep appreciation to the Ford Foundation, our donors, and our dedicated partners for making this work possible. Together, we are building resilience and advancing equity for disabled people in disaster response and recovery.
Category: Announcement, Announcements, Disaster Response, Fundraising, Hurricane Relief Tags: disability, disasters