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[Hurricane Mitch] [Costa Rica and Panama Flood] [Hurricane Katrina] [Guatemala Flood 2005]
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Event: Hurricane Mitch
Date:
November 1999
Countries Affected:
Honduras and Guatemala
Chiquita Communities Affected:
Tela RR Co and COBIGUA North
(Mayan Division)
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Hurricane Mitch formed as one of the most powerful hurricanes in history with
maximum winds of 180 mph and struck Central America becoming one of the
deadliest storms on record. The storm formed on October 22nd, strengthened and
then stalled over Central America. The massive amounts of rain that the
hurricane dumped on Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua caused more damage than
the winds themselves. A record 75 inches of rain were dumped on the countries
from October 29th through November 3rd.
The rain caused massive flooding and landslides as entire mountainsides engulfed
small towns. Nearly 11,000 people were
confirmed killed and another 8,000 were left missing at the end of 1998. Over $5
billion worth of damage to infrastructure
and the local economies were caused by the storm, which is a massive burden for
the regions less developed economies.
The damage was so widespread that the regions political leaders estimated that
the single hurricane had set back fifty years of progress in their countries.
The local economies are mostly agrarian, and the storm destroyed 70% of the
crops or $900 million in losses. The countries lost ¾ of their infrastructure
crippling the economy and making recovery efforts painstakingly slow. The damage
was so extensive that the communication and transportation infrastructures had
to be rebuilt basically from scratch for entire nations.
Personal losses were severe as well as over 33,000 houses were destroyed and
another 50,000 were severly damaged. In
Guatemala alone the flood displaced over 730,000 habitants and forced an
additional 100,000 evacuations. Over 27 schools
were destroyed and ten times that number were damaged.
Similar to the rest of Central America, Mitch’s heavy rains caused mudslides and
severe flooding over Guatemala. The
flooding destroyed 6,000 houses and damaged 20,000 others, displacing over
730,000 and forcing over 100,000 to evacuate.
In addition, the flooding destroyed 27 schools and damaged 286 others, 175
severely. The storms indiscriminate destruction
left virtually no place from which to start the rebuilding process.
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WE CARE In Action
The overwhelming impact of Hurricane
Mitch was the catalyst for employees to form the We Care organization as a means
to
assist our fellow associates in need. We Care’s primary goal was immediate
fundraising to provide donations to the employee communities in order to assist
with the stabilization and rebuilding of affected communities.
What (item listing):
Medical Supplies, Vehicles, and economic
development support funding
Who was it distributed to:
Honduran communities affected by Mitch
Total Expenditure:
$133,000
Mobile Medical Unit Supplies
Total Expenditure: $15,200
We Care fully stocked 4 mobile medical units for a full year. These units
directly assisted the associates and their communities
with the main minor
medical problems that have plagued there locations since the floods. The value
of the medical supplies donated exceeds $75,000 but with the help of Shoulder to
Shoulder and the leading partner, Dr. Heck, the supplies were
purchased at lower
than retail costs.
Transport Vehicle
Total Expenditure:
$29,600
We Care purchased a used utility truck to transport relief goods within
Honduras. The truck will be operated and maintained
by Shoulder to Shoulder, a
local organization co-sponsoring this effort. Our mission is to provide relief
supplies to Chiquita
associates and their local communities quicker and more
efficiently. To date, this truck has enhanced the distribution of
goods ten-fold
in comparison to prior to its introduction.
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The Shoulder to Shoulder Warehouse
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Economic Development– Micro Finance Loans, Materials & Training
Total Expenditure:
$88,200
We Care donations
were being used to make funds available to eligible associates and their
dependents to help reestablish
their way of life through small, independent
loans. These loans, as well as training in money management, were facilitated
through a local organization, FINCA (Fundación Internacional de Honduras).
Additional materials and supplies were granted to employee communities to begin
businesses and establish alternative flows of income.
Relief
Materials
During the
extended recovery effort, We Care also worked with other established charities.
Employees volunteered on
Saturday, May 15th 1999 at Mathew 25,
a relief agency, to pack emergency supplies. The group managed to double the
usual
output and packed 2 containers worth of relief materials.
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In
September, members of the Chiquita Global Community Fund-We Care had the
opportunity to meet with Mary de Flores,
the first lady of Honduras, during a
fundraising event sponsored by Shoulder to Shoulder. The event allowed We
Care to
introduce the purpose and scope of the organization to the first lady as
well as discuss the many successes achieved to date. Shoulder to Shoulder, who
has partnered with We Care on past projects to support the victims of Hurricane
Mitch, is
dedicated to providing ongoing primary medical care and public health
services to residents of remote areas of Honduras. |
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Honduras’ First Lady Mary de Flores and former CEO Steve Warshaw speak at a
fundraiser for relief efforts and later spent time at a reception in her honor.
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IMPACT
Communities are
still recovering from the catastrophic impact of Hurricane Mitch. The immediate
material and financial donations that We Care assisted our communities to regain
a quick foothold. Further projects focusing on economic development through
support of micro business and the construction of schools will provide longer
lasting assistance to the rebuilding of communities.
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Thank you for caring and
making this work possible...
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