Following the passage of life-threatening Hurricane Beryl, the Caribbean countries have been hit hard by the effects of the storm and are coping with it. Amid this, the United Kingdom has announced an aid package of £500,000 for the Caribbean countries.
David Lammy, the newly appointed Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom, made this announcement after taking charge in his office.
This financial support is released with the intention of providing immediate relief to those who have been suffering due to Hurricane Beryl’s aftermath. The people whose homes and livelihoods have been hampered will be provided with help.
Apart from the monetary aid, the UK has also sent around 800 shelter kits which has the capability to support at least 4,000 people.
Significantly, Grenada and St. Vincent and the Grenadines are the islands that are facing a major setback and damage as Hurricane Beryl hit the island. These two islands have already been sent shelter kits and 1,620 buckets for water collection and storage.
The Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, shared the message through video on his social media, stating that the UK stands strong with the people in need, the ones who lost their loved ones, their shelters or are left with no electricity.
Sharing the purpose of the funding, he added, this funding will help support disaster recovery efforts, as part of a swift and coordinated response in the region.
Lammy also highlighted the issue of climate change and shared his concern on the same stating, “that such a storm has developed so early in the season shows that we are facing a climate emergency and must act now.”
Furthermore, responding to a request from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), the UK has helped by providing support for the deployment of regional teams.
It is to be noted that these teams will provide their support at the national disaster offices with emergency operations and by participating in relief and logistics management, telecommunications, security issues, and sectoral assessments.
