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Tornadoes and violent storms ripped through parts of the Mid-South in February, causing more than 65 casualties and leaving hundreds homeless throughout Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee. This was the deadliest outbreak of tornadoes in the US in more than 20 years. Without delay, AmeriCares responded to the devastated areas, sending medicines and supplies to support the immediate relief efforts.
An emergency delivery of aid, including over 8,000 pounds of cough and cold medicines, bottled water, infant formula, medical supplies, diapers, hygiene products and cleaning supplies, was delivered to our partner on the ground in Kentucky, the Christian Appalachian Project, who in turn distributed the relief to the most-affected regions. AmeriCares also worked with our partners, Nestlé Waters and Kraft Foods, to deliver additional truckloads of bottled water, juices and other food items to help stock relief shelters. “AmeriCares has a fully stocked warehouse at our Stamford headquarters, which allows us to turn on a dime in response to disasters like this,” says AmeriCares Director of Emergency Response John Connell. “Our expertise is in rapid response logistics—getting emergency aid to those most affected as soon as possible—by connecting with partners already in the disaster region who can identify the most urgent concerns. This enables AmeriCares to send aid that is appropriate and critical to the situation at hand.”
AmeriCares has responded to natural disasters in the US for more than 25 years including, the tornadoes that virtually destroyed Greensburg, Kansas last year and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the Gulf Coast in 2005, and we continue to support ongoing reconstruction projects.