Aicha’s Story: Leading her family to safety
Read Aicha's story: a mother from Sudan, whose life was turned upside down when violence reached her village and forced her to flee to Chad.
Lucy, 65 years old, outside her ShelterBox tent after Hurricane Beryl.
Hide
Destroyed home after Hurricane Beryl in the Caribbean.
Hide
A devastating storm hits
On July 1st, 2024, Hurricane Beryl flattened parts of the Caribbean after making landfall as a Category 4 storm. Strong winds destroyed homes, uprooted trees and brought down power lines.
Petite Martinique and Carriacou were two of the worst hit islands, both in the country of Grenada. ShelterBox provided emergency aid to people living on these two islands, enabling them to repair and rebuild while staying on their home sites.
Life before the hurricane
Born in Petite Martinique, 65-year-old Lucy lives on Carriacou, an island in Grenada, with her stepdaughter, two sons, daughter-in-law and grandson.
Before Hurricane Beryl, Lucy worked as a repair seamstress and a full-time carer for her disabled son.
When the hurricane hit, Lucy was unable to go to one of the community shelters, as the busy crowds would cause her son further distress.
I just wish to God if any hurricane is to come again, we have a stronger place to hide from it… I didn’t want to go to the shelter, because how [my son] behaves, I wouldn’t be able to take it. I wouldn’t be able to control him. So, most of the time I am at home, and I don’t go anywhere. So, we must stay home, you know, to keep him calm… to keep him calm.
Lucy talking to the ShelterBox team about the damage to her home after Hurricane Beryl.
Hide
The day the storm arrived
On the day of the storm, the weather was deceptively calm.
“Outside in the morning it didn’t look like a hurricane was coming. I got up early in the morning and I cooked… The morning was nice, the sun was bright, and then after some time the wind started brewing.”
Many people hid in their bathrooms during the storm, as the walls are usually stronger.
“It was not easy because the bathroom was vibrating… You could hear the force of the wind going. I was just praying to God for the time to go… I was just praying and watching the time. We stayed in the bathroom until everything was over. When we came out, everything had disappeared around us.”
Damage caused to Lucy's home by Hurricane Beryl.
Hide
The damage left behind
After Hurricane Beryl passed, Lucy found that she had lost the entire roof of her house and most of the partitioned walls.
When we came out, I could see the side of the building had fallen on our bathroom. And thank you Jesus that the bathroom was strong. If it wasn’t strong, it would have killed us, it would have gone down on us. But there are people who experienced it worse than us, very bad.
Lucy sitting in the porch of her ShelterBox tent.
Hide
Holding on to hope
In the aftermath of the hurricane, despite the damage to her home, Lucy focuses on what they still have.
“This is the first time this type of devastation has happened to us… If we didn’t have a good heart and take it all on, we would not make it… But we must give God thanks and praise, because there are other people in other places that are going through worse than us. We are alive. Where there is life, there is hope. We will be back, and we will be back stronger. We just need the help.”
Decorative stones outside Lucy's tent.
Hide
Living with the impact
Many people across Petite Martinique and Carriacou reported that Beryl was one of the worst hurricanes they had ever experienced.
“Well, this is the worst I have experienced. Storm Ivan wasn’t like that; Ivan was a child to this one. This one was the great gran compared. I just wish I could see all the buildings with their roofs back. To make the island look more like it did before. I don’t like driving and seeing the disaster areas. When I drive and see all the places hit bad, it hurts my heart. It’s not a nice sight.”
Lucy outside her emergency shelter.
Hide
Shelter support
Lucy and her family received a ShelterBox tent, along with a mosquito net, a kitchen set and a solar light.
I got the tent, which I love, so bad. I love it, I love it, love it, love it. I got this tent, plus everything inside a bag. The mosquito net, the light – especially the light. The light is wonderful. I use the light in the night for my son. When he gets up in the night, he sees to go to the bathroom.
Lucy shows the ShelterBox team how she's decorated her tent.
Hide
Making a space her own
Visiting Lucy in her ShelterBox tent, you can see her passion for creativity and how she has made her shelter personal.
“Well, I decorated, I put up decoration because I love my decorations… I just made it comfortable for me. Everybody comes round, and they love it because their tent wouldn’t be like mine. They don’t have what I have, to make it nice for me… It feels like I’m in the house. And how I’ve made it means I don’t miss my room. It’s my little house. My little house, I love it.”
In the aftermath of the storm, Lucy has found comfort in a space she can call her own.
