Hurricane Harvey - World Vision disaster response

On August 25, our country’s first Category 3 or higher hurricane since 2005 made landfall over Texas. Over the course of just six days, 50 inches of rain fell in some areas, which amounts to more than 27 trillion gallons of water. It was the most rain from a single storm event to fall anywhere in the continental United States.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott says it may cost as much as $180 billion to rebuild the state after the storm’s catastrophic flooding, which would make it the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. An estimated 60,000 people required temporary shelter, and 82 people lost their lives. Although Harvey’s damage is still being assessed, an estimated 13 million people have been affected, nearly 135,000 families lost their homes, and up to 1 million cars were destroyed. Not only that, families lost furniture, appliances, clothing, children’s toys, and school supplies—everything in their homes was destroyed.

World Vision, in partnership with local community partners, mobilized support and supplies to help 300,000 families recover from this loss. Flood waters affected roadways and made transportation a challenge, but through the incredible support of World Vision’s donors, 70 semi-truck loads of relief supplies were shipped to and distributed throughout the greater Houston area.

90-DAY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Within three months of the storm, your support equipped World Vision to reach 99,080 people with relief supplies, which were distributed through 60 partners across Houston. 

This support included:

• Emergency food and water supplies, along with coolers
• Hygiene items including soap, toothpaste, toilet paper, feminine toiletry products, towels, and diapers—which provide dignity and protection from disease
• Rebuilding materials such as drywall, flooring, and roofing
• Cleaning supplies including bleach, buckets, rags, and gloves Temporary shelter supplies including tents, sleeping bags, and blankets
• Mattresses and bedding
• Appliances, dehumidifiers, and fans
• School supplies, including backpacks
• Clothing and toys

World Vision and our partners are committed to helping Houston area families in their ongoing rebuilding efforts. One local partner, Ecclesia Church, is donating a 50,000-squarefoot warehouse space in downtown Houston, which will be used as a central distribution site for the next 12 months.

Emergency relief helps people in their hour of greatest need. Distributions of food, water, temporary shelter supplies, and hygiene kits can be lifesaving gifts to those who have lost everything. They also help lift the financial burden of starting over, especially for those who were struggling to get by before disaster struck.

With the support of our donors and partners, World Vision also aims to help restore hope, dignity, and joy in people of all ages as they cope with significant loss. After all, hope is an essential element of resilience—a person’s capacity to recover from shock and stress. And resilience is what helps families, communities, and countries across the globe reduce the chronic vulnerabilities  that contribute to poverty.

In Houston, we saw regular glimpses of this hope and joy at every distribution—in the laugh of a child who just received a new toy, and in the relief that washed over a parent’s face when the laugh rang out. 

Pedro, Nuris, and their 2-year-old son, JuanDavid (pictured below), went to a distribution of relief supplies at Parkway Fellowship Church in Katy, Texas following Hurricane Harvey. Like so many people, they had been forced to rapidly evacuate their apartment, which didn’t leave much time to pack their personal items. Volunteers gave JuanDavid a stuffed Minion that brought delight to the young boy, and a big smile to his father’s face.

Nuris smiled as she opened her women’s hope kit, which World Vision provided through a partnership with Thirty-One Gifts. The kit contained women’s toiletry items and a hand-written note from the person who packed it. 

Thank you for supporting World Vision’s effort to let the people of Houston know that they are not alone.