UN supporting national relief efforts as Hurricane Irma threatens nearly 50 million people

United Nations agencies are supporting relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Irma, which has already wreaked havoc on Antigua and Barbuda and other Caribbean islands and is en route towards the United States.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA, Irma, a Category 5 storm, made landfall on northeast Caribbean islands during the early hours of 6th September, affecting Antigua and Barbuda, Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, St Barthelemy, St. Martin, the US Virgin Islands and other islands in the eastern Caribbean Sea.

Irma was predicted to hit Puerto Rico before continuing to the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba, Turks and Caicos and south-eastern Bahamas. About 49 million people are directly in Hurricane Irma’s projected path, including more than 10.5 million children.

In a press release, the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, warned that more than 10.5 million children live in the countries that are likely to be exposed to the damage from Hurricane Irma. Children in the islands of the Eastern Caribbean, Dominican Republic, Haiti and Cuba are at risk, including over 3 million under the age of five.

The World Food Programme, WFP, said that an aircraft bound for Haiti and carrying some 80 metric tons of emergency food supplies and other equipment on behalf of WFP, CARE and Catholic Relief Services is due to leave the UN Humanitarian Response Depot in Dubai early this morning local time.

Also, the UN Development Programme, UNDP, said it is sending experts on crisis recovery to support the people of the Caribbean.

UNDP has activated its crisis preparedness plans in several countries in the region, and will support them both during the immediate response to this disaster and in crucial early recovery activities like debris and waste management, emergency employment and supporting core government functions, if asked.