BOSTON – Hurricane Fiona is gaining strength, putting it on track to become the first major hurricane in the Atlantic this year. The powerful storm has already battered Puerto Rico, and people of Massachusetts are eager to help.
Fiona knocked out power to most of the island, and it could be days before lights come back on in Puerto Rico. Entire neighborhoods are underwater, and the National Guard was called in to rescue hundreds of people who were trapped inside their homes.
“The layer after layer of anxiety and loss and trauma is incredibly severe,” said Chris Farrand, regional emergency disaster services director for the Salvation Army in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island. “People lose their homes, roads are out, jobs are lost, buildings are lost, jobs are lost, cars are damaged.”
Many areas of the island still haven’t recovered from Hurricane Maria. That storm five years ago decimated the power grid and killed nearly 3,000 people.
After painful logistical lessons and rebuilding, emergency response teams said the fastest and most focused way to help is donating money.
“You want to be able to give the teddy bear or the pajamas and yet right now in the middle of the storm it’s almost impossible to get those items there and they need them right away,” Farrand said.
Facing unprecedented levels of water, and with more rain on the way, leaders at every level know the need will be long term.
“It could change much more severely in the next couple days as we see the full impacts,” Farrand said.
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