Local Non Profit Lends Aid to Storm Ravaged Areas

As people brace for what could be one of the largest storms ever to hit the United States, a local non-profit organization is also preparing for the disaster.Direct Relief U.S.A. is the only non-profit organization licensed in all 50 states to distribute pharmaceuticals.Organizers say, they are standing by ready to ship aid, f the storm causes the damage many forecasters have predicted.The non-profit is gearing up for the worst case scenario. It works with more than one thousand community based clinics and health care facilities nation wide–serving about 10 million people.”Our goal is to try to identify all the clinics in the path of the hurricane and get in touch with them to let them know we are actively monitoring the storm, and ready to supply them with the support they need,” explains Damon Taugher, the Director of Direct Relief U.S.A.Those supplies will likely include antibiotics and vaccines to sutures and personal care products. The non profit has a history of lending a helping hand in times of disaster.”From our experience we know emergencies hit people in different ways. Those who are more vulnerable are going to be in greater need of assistance.”Direct Relief uses research and technology to pin point which communities will be the most vulnerable, making the largest impact with its resources.Meanwhile, more than three thousand people in nine states on the east coast are waiting out the storm in Red Cross shelters, and that number is expected to grow.At least two volunteers from the Red Cross Tri Counties are headed to the area to help.If you’d like to help, or learn more about the local Red Cross or Direct Relief efforts, you can go to: http://www.redcross.org/ca/santa-barbara or, http://www.directrelief.org/usa/