240,000 people already affected by hurricane “Beryl”
Published: Friday, Jul 5th 2024, 13:30
العودة إلى البث المباشر
Almost a quarter of a million people in the Caribbean are already dealing with the consequences of Hurricane Beryl. In the island state of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, 40,000 are affected, in Grenada 100,000 and in Jamaica 120,000, reports the UN emergency aid office OCHA in Geneva.
According to local staff, the hurricane will reach the coast of Mexico in the next few hours.
"Beryl" caused severe devastation, said OCHA spokeswoman Vanessa Huguenin. On some Caribbean islands, more than 90 percent of the houses were damaged or destroyed. Roofs had been torn off, trees had fallen and power lines had been torn down.
"The extent of the damage caused by Hurricane Beryl is tangible and devastating," said Rhea Pierre, who works for the Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) in Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago. Off Barbados, 200 fishing boats were destroyed or damaged.
On Union Island, the southernmost island of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, many people have lost everything. "They arrive on the main island with only what they have on them," she said. The Red Cross is distributing blankets, plastic sheets, drinking water, food and hygiene products everywhere.
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