Morocco, Maui & More

Over the past seven days, Direct Relief has delivered 372 shipments of requested medical aid to 37 U.S. states and territories and 15 countries worldwide.

The shipments contained 11.3 million defined daily doses of medication, including first aid kits, insulin, vitamins, PPE, antibiotics, and more.

Morocco Relief

Direct Relief is working to help route needed supplies to Morocco. Among the donations in process, in coordination with a local manufacturer and The High Atlas Foundation, are 20,000 units of requested nutritionals for affected community in Morocco. The High Atlas Foundation has a long history of working in Morocco’s mountainous communities near the epicenter of the earthquake.

Direct Relief is also supporting Bomberos Unidos Sin Fronteras (United Firefighters without Borders) with an emergency operating grant of $100,000. The NGO, based in Spain, is conducting search and rescue efforts in Morocco at the request of the Moroccan government.

Their in-country team, including firefighters, canine units, and emergency health professionals, is conducting search and rescue activities in Amizmiz, approximately 35 miles south of Marrakesh, where people are still rescued from damaged and collapsed buildings.

Direct Relief will continue to track the situation closely and respond to requests for support as needs arise in the coming days and months.

Maui Fire Relief

Since the deadly Maui fire tore through Lahaina last month, Direct Relief has provided more than $500,000 in medical aid and financial assistance to over a dozen local healthcare and response organizations on the island.

This week alone, Direct Relief delivered more than one ton of requested medical resources, including medic packs and first aid items.

Direct Relief is also supporting residents of Lahaina with critical protective gear as they return to their homes to begin clean-up. In coordination with local volunteers, the Maui County Emergency Management Agency, and Hawaii State Emergency Management will provide Direct Relief-donated protective gear for residents returning to retrieve belongings and assess damage to their property.

Public health officials advise people to take certain measures to protect their health as they return to burn areas and begin the difficult task of cleanup and recovery. They are also advised residents to be alert to certain health conditions associated with natural disasters, disaster cleanup, and repopulation of impacted areas. These include rashes, infections and other injuries, as well as illnesses such as tetanus.

Since the fires began on August 8, Direct Relief has sent 55 shipments of requested medicines and medical supplies, including first aid kits, emergency medical backpacks, insulin, inhalers, and naloxone, to 16 nonprofit health providers on the island.

OPERATIONAL SNAPSHOT

WORLDWIDE

This week, Direct Relief shipped 8.8 million defined daily doses of medication outside the U.S.

Countries that received medical aid over the past week included:

UNITED STATES

Direct Relief delivered 352 shipments containing more than 10 tons of medications over the past week to organizations, including the following:

YEAR-TO-DATE (GLOBAL)

Since January 1, 2023, Direct Relief has delivered 14,300 shipments to 2,176 healthcare providers in 55 U.S. states and territories and 82 countries.

These shipments contained 395.4 million defined daily doses of medication valued at $1.4 billion (wholesale), totaling 4.8 million lbs.

in the news

• How to help victims of the earthquake in Morocco – Today
• Morocco Earthquake: How to support the disaster relief efforts – Vanguard Charitable
• Direct Relief: Volunteers prepare thousands of hygiene kits for those in need across the world – KEYT News Channel 3
• Lighting up the world: Santa Barbara non-profit distributes hundreds of thousands of solar lamps – KCLU