It was just last month that Annette Reyes was in Puerto Rico to visit family members who still live in the U.S. territory.
Weeks later, Reyes has been subjected to videos and photos in the news of places where she recently visited now completely destroyed as Hurricane Fiona rips through the area. She worries for not only her own family still living on the island, but for the families of many of her Puerto Rican friends in the Greater Columbus area as the await word from their loved ones.
“It’s heartbreaking because it’s such a beautiful place,” said Reyes, who lived in Puerto Rico until she was 7 and her parents settled in the mainland. “It’s a very uncertain time, and it’s scary waiting to hear if people are safe.”
USA TODAY: Hurricane Fiona intensifies after ‘catastrophic’ rain, mudslides in Puerto Rico; 80% without power
Hurricane Fiona grew more powerful Tuesday, claiming at least three lives as it rolled past Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. The islands were hit with up to 30 inches of rain, which triggered overwhelming flooding, and mudslides, leaving much of the islands in ruin, USA TODAY reported.
As humanitarian efforts are likely to ramp up, more than 80% of Puerto Rico was left without power and two thirds of the island’s residents without water service more than 24 hours after the storm shut down the entire electrical system. Gov. Pedro Pierluisi requested a major disaster declaration, which if granted would free up federal funds for public and individual assistance.
Reyes is aware that many in Greater Columbus may be moved to help the people of Puerto Rico find safety, supplies and food in the aftermath of the catastrophic storm. It’s her hope that in order to limit the time it takes for help to arrive overseas, people will consider donating to relief organizations and grassroots mutual aid groups with a physical presence in Puerto Rico, many of which were created after the territory was leveled in 2017 by Hurricane Maria.
“To me it’s about getting the money to the people and to the organizations that are on the ground serving them,” said Reyes, who lives in Pickerington.
The organizations to which Reyes suggested that people donations include:
Many other grassroots organizations can be found via a list compiled by USA TODAY.
How can I help Puerto Rico recover from Hurricane Fiona? Here are some nonprofits and mutual aid funds you can support
A spokeswoman for the Ohio National Guard said it has not yet been requested to provide any sort of assistance or relief to Puerto Rico. But the American Red Cross of Central and Southern Ohio is already mobilizing resources to provide aid to the territory.
Prior to Hurricane Fiona making landfall, the Red Cross made sure that blood products to support hospitals were already available in Puerto Rico, which included blood donations from the Columbus area, said Marita Salkowski, the Red Cross regional communications director.
Salkowski said more than 120 shelters have opened in Puerto Rico, many of which are located in schools powered by solar micro-grid power systems installed with $1.5 million in Red Cross support following the devastation of Hurricane Maria.
About a dozen Red Cross volunteers from the central and southern Ohio region are deployed elsewhere to help with relief amid other disasters — two in Alaska to assist those affected by Typhon Merbok, and the others in California helping those affected by wildfires. But Salkowski said that Red Cross volunteers from states with a larger Spanish-speaking populations are traveling to offer relief in Puerto Rico.
Here are other ways that Greater Columbus residents can to help the Red Cross in its Puerto Rico relief efforts:
“People see the disaster on the news and they see the pictures and they want to volunteer,” Salkowski said. “We are always in need of volunteers, so if this disaster in Puerto Rico is a catalyst for you, then now is a good time to do this.”
At Ohio State University, the Puerto Rican Student Association plans to host a candlelight ceremony from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Sunday on the north side of the campus Oval for victims of Hurricane Fiona, said Ohio State Junior Gabriella Rivera Fernández, 20, the organization’s leader. A donation box and a QR code will be available for guests who wish to donate to Taller Salud, a community-based, women-led nonprofit that’s collecting items including toiletries, water filters and nonperishable foods.
The PRSA is also collaborating with the Latinx Student Association at Ohio State to host donation collection events on Sept. 30 in the Ohio Union and on Oct. 2 at Ohio Stadium.
As Reyes continues to learn about the devastation left in Hurricane Fiona’s wake, she can only hope that people are moved to give.
In the meantime, Reyes is uncertain when her mother will be able to return home.
“They can’t catch a break (in Puerto Rico,)” Reyes said through tears. “I really hope this time around they’re given the means to recover in the ways they should be allowed to.”
elagatta@dispatch.com
@EricLagatta