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AmeriCares is now accepting donations to support recovery efforts in Greensburg, Kansas, which was virtually destroyed after a deadly, mile-wide tornado ripped through the community.
“This is a terrible tragedy and one that will necessitate a long-term recovery effort,” says AmeriCares Director of Emergency Response John Connell. “At this point we are in regular communication with several of our disaster relief partners, assessing needs to determine how we will contribute to the immediate and longer-term relief effort.”
AmeriCares and Nestle Waters arranged for two truckloads of bottled water to be delivered to those affected by the tornado. The 76,000 bottles have arrived and will be distributed by AmeriCares partners Hope Crisis Response Network and the Salvation Army.
Twelve people were killed and dozens more injured in the tornado, which demolished 90% of the farming town’s homes and other buildings, uprooted fields and left behind piles of rubble that were sometimes 20- and 30-feet deep.
AmeriCares has responded to natural disasters in the U.S. throughout its 25-year history, including Hurricane Katrina in 2005, another catastrophe which has necessitated a long-term relief effort. In the emergency response phase, AmeriCares delivered more than $10 million of medicines and disaster relief supplies to the Gulf Coast to aid the survivors. A long-term Hurricane Recovery Program for the Gulf Coast established by AmeriCares has distributed millions of additional dollars in grants to grassroots organizations in the region to support their most pressing needs.
“As usual, the American people are generous in wanting to support their fellow citizens in a time of need,” says Connell. “AmeriCares is the bridge between people wanting to help, and the delivery of that help to those who most need it.”