The day began at 8:30 AM where 20 volunteers gathered to begin distribution of food, water, and supplies donated to The K1 Britannia Foundation to institutions with vulnerable persons on the island in preparation for Hurricane Maria. The volunteers divided into teams and delivered items to assist the institutions until the weekend. The institutions included the White and Yellow Cross Care Foundation, St. Maarten Medical Center, Safe Haven Foundation SXM, I Can and New Start Foster Homes, Mental Health Foundation Sint Maarten, Turning Point, all the children under protective custody, shelters, soup kitchens etc.

At midday, the foundation was requested to assist as site managers for the evacuation shelters that were scheduled to open yesterday afternoon around the island. These 8 evacuation centers are for shelter during the storm for those whose houses are severely damaged, and those who are now homeless because of Hurricane Irma. The team of K1 volunteers alongside a group of Red Cross volunteers attended an induction meeting by UN Migration Agency – IOM (International Organisation For Migration) representative which gave the team valuable information on Hurricane Maria and the basics of how to manage an Evacuation Center, how to handle key issues, etc.

It was decided that 8 of our K1 volunteers would be site managers for 4 of the shelters around the Dutch Side of the island for the next 48 hours. They will be working with the Red Cross for all medical issues and the Koninklijke Marine for safety and security.

We want to say a special thank you to all those volunteers who are volunteering at the shelters, we appreciate each of you!