PHILIPSBURG–After almost eleven consistent months of disaster relief activities, K1 Britannia Foundation is rounding off its Irma-focused activities. The foundation has been busy with immediate, mid- and long-term relief for the community since the day of Hurricane Irma, September 6, 2017.
Realising its imminent threat but unsure of what to expect, 48 hours prior to the passing of Hurricane Irma K1 called on its volunteers who had indicated interest in assisting in disaster situations to be prepared in case they were needed in the relief efforts. Within three hours of Irma’s passing, volunteers and the Coast Guard met as planned and quickly realised initiative had to be taken.
After being made aware after the hurricane that there was no emergency food or water for shelters, places of refuge that had taken in vulnerable people, and care institutions, K1 managed within 24 hours with the assistance of the Koninklijke Marechaussee and Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard to secure enough supplies to sustain roughly 2,000-plus people in those institutions, as well as aid workers and law enforcement personnel.
White and Yellow Cross Care Foundation Operations Manager Bregje Boetekees expressed gratitude to K1 on Tuesday.
“What a wonderful organisation K1 is – filled with people who truly care for others. I know many of the helpers that came out from K1. They themselves had losses and had to endure a hard time after Irma, but nobody hesitated to put on their boots and put their shoulders under the load for something that was completely disorganised and in disarray and with the energy and the impact that they did,” stated Boetekees.
The foundation team of 20-40 volunteers worked tirelessly alongside the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard, Dutch Marines, Dutch United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC), international relief organisations and government, specifically Emergency Support Function 7 (ESF-7) – Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labour VSA to help the people of St. Maarten.
The foundation became known as the main reliable source of volunteers for relief initiatives and took on the responsibility of leading volunteer efforts in the areas of first response and rapid assessment of all places of refuge and care institutions in Dutch St. Maarten, setting up and management of shelters and mass distribution of relief goods, amongst other relief activities.
K1 alongside key partners like the Dutch Marines and the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard held a total of 23 mass and mini distributions through which more than 21,000 persons were assisted with food, water and supplies. Once the mass distributions were finished, more than 400 food and water packages were made with the help of Prime Distributors to assist the elderly, soup kitchens and hard-hit neighbourhoods.
Key partner Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard Deputy Director Eugene Middelhof said, “K1 is well organised and has proven its ability to ensure that the ones that are in need of assistance are taken care of. Its intentions are genuine and its results speak for themselves.”
Volunteers set up multiple shelters by cleaning and sanitising them, and managed four emergency shelters for 48 hours prior to, during and post-Hurricane Maria. After Hurricane Maria, K1 also sent a team of volunteers to Dominica. Some of the ways they assisted were in the setting-up of tents to be used as temporary classrooms while schools were being repaired, assessment of shelters with the International Organisation for Migration, trauma counselling, assisting with food distribution, etc.
Locally, K1’s volunteers were on call for ESF-7 during the weeks and months after Hurricane Irma, assisting in responding to the myriad needs and challenges that presented themselves during those challenging times.
VSA Secretary-General Joy Arnell said, “K1 Britannia is dynamic, attentive to the needs of the people, very much out there in terms of consistency and making sure that persons are helped in whichever way possible.
“I’ve not seen such a strong and continuous action of young people in a long time. They have not stopped for one single minute, it has been an ongoing effort. No matter how often they are called, they are always ready to work, and they have worked, in my view, even longer than I’ve worked, in terms of the amount of hours being put in right after the storm.
“I think the organisation shows the resilience of this community. It is embedded in these people, and with this type of continuous efforts and determination, I think we will bounce back sooner than we anticipated.”
More than 20 local organisations and shelters that help vulnerable groups such as foster children, elderly, sick, mentally-ill, at-risk youth, those made homeless through Irma, etc., were adopted by K1 Britannia and its volunteers visited each of these places immediately after Irma to see what was needed as far as food and water, supplies, medical help, etc., were concerned.
Each organisation was consistently supplied with food, water, hygiene and baby supplies, etc., until it was able to get back on its feet – for some places this was from immediately after Irma until the end of January. This help enabled these organisations and institutions to stay functional throughout this difficult period when those for whom they cared needed their help more than ever.
The focus of K1 has always been helping one of the most vulnerable groups of youth on the island: children in protective custody, foster children.
Court of Guardianship SJIB director Richelda Rodriguez-Emmanuel said, “In the aftermath of Irma, K1 proved their dedication and reliability in caring for the youth of St. Maarten. Within the first 72 hours of the passing of the hurricane K1 conducted rapid assessments and first response to the group foster homes, and acted to meet their needs.
“In the weeks that followed, they provided food, water, clothing, blankets, furniture and other necessities to these institutions and to the SJIB for over 90 minors under protective custody measure,” stated Emmanuel.
Lack of electricity and food supplies prevented many persons from providing hot meals for themselves in the weeks immediately after Irma, so, with the help of a volunteer chef, 400 hot meals were distributed to needy neighbourhoods, the elderly, afterschool programmes, foster homes, etc.
Mid-term relief
From December onwards, the focus was on procuring the material help these institutions needed, as most had suffered damage and needed new equipment, furniture and other materials. The local community organisations and needy families received material help such as 100-plus couches, 300-plus chairs, 500-plus pillows, 100-plus comforters, office furniture, etc.
Six organisations catering to children received construction assistance, done by local youth along with international volunteer contractors. Helping these community organisations was a way to reach some of the most vulnerable in the community. International donations were also facilitated through K1 to help some of the community organisations rebuild.
Targeting the children on the island, more than 25 primary and high schools and afterschool programmes received water, milk, food supplies, 35,000-plus high energy biscuits, hygiene products, can liners, blankets, etc., for the needy students and the schools.
St. Maarten Early Childhood Development Association (SECDA), responsible for 20-plus day-cares, also received assistance such as hundreds of baby food packages, 700-plus bottles of milk, 5,500-plus litres of water, food, blankets, hygiene products and more.
As a way to bring tourism back to the island and help re-establish St. Maarten’s positive image, K1 has connected more than 50 international volunteers since Irma who wanted to help with a local need and have been an invaluable help to K1’s relief and rebuilding programmes. The plans are to turn this into a permanent international volunteer programme.
Royal Netherlands Marine Corps Major Andries Broersma said, “Priya and her team truly seem to care and do the right thing under difficult circumstances with no time for own agendas, a property that Dutch Marines wish to relate to! If in the (unfortunate) event the island needs our help again, we look forward to closely working with the K1 Britannia Foundation again.”
K1 Britannia Foundation is soon to announce its long-term plans in collaboration with key partners for ongoing disaster relief and preparedness both for St. Maarten and the Caribbean region, as it has been decided after Irma that disaster relief will remain one of the foundation’s strong focuses.
For more information about K1 Britannia Foundation and to see a day-by-day journal of the first 28 days after Irma, and weekly updates afterwards of Irma and Maria relief activities, visit its website
www.k1britanniafoundation.org . A documentary covering the foundation’s experiences post-Irma will be released soon.
The foundation can be contacted via email at
foundation@k1britannia.org or by sending a message to it at Facebook
www.facebook.com/k1sxm .
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/79146-k1-britannia-rounds-off-post-irma-relief-aid
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