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Welcome to Operation Cruisers' Aid![edit | edit source]
We are Cruisers...giving back to the islands we love.
Though the devastation cased by Hurricane Beryl in July of 2024 was immense, the caring and giving nature of those living on sailboats and cruising the world (“Cruisers”) was somehow greater. The basic human needs of those living on Carriacou, Union Island, Petit Martinique and Mayreau were not being met in the immediate days following Beryl making landfall. Cruisers, many of them displaced themselves, having fled to Trinidad, banded together with other likeminded cruisers and local experts in Trinidad to answer that call.
After the weather was deemed safe enough to travel to these impacted islands, cruising yachts, laden with donations made in Trinidad, throughout the Caribbean and even across the world were staging to bring supplies like water, ready to eat meals and basic sanitary needs into the areas of greatest need. Scout boats arrived first bearing donations, but also surveying the situation and relaying back to the command post in Trinidad.
The destinations for supplies was being adjusted on a daily basis to match the conditions found on the ground by the scout boats. And for many days after Hurricane Beryl’s arrival, Operation Cruisers’ Aid was the first organization to bring any aid to these islands.
Our efforts continued for much of the month of July with donations gradually shifting to rebuilding supplies until larger aid organization were able to mobilize and start bringing real power to bear in the relief and rebuilding efforts.
Operation Recovery and Refloat was spawned by those spearheading Operation Cruisers’ Aid, in an effort to help the myriad disabled, partially sunk and destroyed boats clogging he Carriacou Mangroves. The goals were simple; minimize the loss of boats by saving those in a salvagable state, minimize the environmental impacts and recover local fishing boats that would be critical for the recovery of the local economy,
Our Group, Operation Cruisers' Aid, is a grassroots effort by likeminded cruisers, people living and traveling by sailboat, to give back to the islands and her people that bring us our grand adventures. We are fortunate to be working alongside Jesse James, a local Trinidadian who is a strong supporter of the Windward Islands and cruising community. Jesse is well known throughout the region for his volunteerism and leadership.
We have the boats to transport items in desperate need, but we also need donations to help purchase these items so we can bring as much as safely possible!
An overview of our Mission:[edit | edit source]
July 20th Update[edit | edit source]
Our mission has always been to bridge the gap in aid between the disaster and the mobilization of larger aid organizations by using displaced cruising boats as the means of transportation. Most of the boats that have moved out of the path of Hurricane Beryl have since moved back to their intended locations. While donations and the availability of transport has dwindled, we are still making sure that every donated dollar gets put to use helping those in need!
At this point, the coordination team of Operation Cruisers' Aid is looking at ways to make this response a template for future responses. We are also investigating if this effort can be funded by an international aid organization so that it is always ready to deploy and with better reporting tools and needs based aid for the next time such a disaster strikes.
Archived Information[edit | edit source]
Here's Where You Come In![edit | edit source]
Transport Donations
Donate needed Items
Donate funds to our GoFundMe campaign
- Follow this link: https://www.gofundme.com/f/cruiser-relief-response-to-beryl
Purchase needed aid items while in or near the affected items and request a reimbursement after they are delivered.
- Use this form to request an allocation of GoFundMe Money to be used toward purchasing and delivery aid items.
Help recover the fishing and sailing boats affected in the Carriacou Mangroves
- A WhatsApp community has been started to coordinate these efforts: Join here.
Have some other way you want to help?
Primary Communication During the Response[edit | edit source]
Operation Cruisers' Aid has made extensive use of WhatsApp Community and Groups for communication during our response. Most groups are joinable by any person within the community; however some are meant for a smaller group and approval is required.
Operation Cruisers' Aid Community on WhatsApp
WhatsApp Groups[edit | edit source]
All WhatsApp groups are available to see after joining the community linked above.
Groups of wide appeal
- OCA: General Discussion - Used for communication across the general community
- Delivery Boats - Used for communication between delivery boats and coordinators
- Donations
- External Liaisons
- Media and Fundraising
- Urgent Aid Needs
Groups for coordination of efforts within primary islands of support or impact
- Bequia Coordination
- Canouan Coordination
- Carriacou Coordination
- Grenada Coordination
- Martinique Coordination
- Mayreau Coordination
- Petite Martinique Coordination
- Saint Vincent Coordination
- Sint Martin Coordination
- St. Lucia Coordination
- Trinidad Coordination
- Union Island Coordination
- VIs, Puerto Rico, Anguilla Coordination
- Carriacou Boat Recovery - Communication between boat owners and those that are tryinh to help them recover their boats from the Carriacou mangroves,
Groups for the management and coordination team
- COORDINATOR TEAM ONLY
- GoFundMe Management
- Information Management Team
Delivery Boat Information[edit | edit source]
Current Status of Delivery Boats
Instructions for boats departing Trinidad
Instructions for boats departing all other islands
Delivery Boat Inventory Form (Online Fillable Form (preferred), Printable PDF)
Social Media Links[edit | edit source]
Cruisers’ Response to Hurricane Beryl Facebook Group
DropBox for photos and videos on recovery efforts
Documentation and Systems Put in Place During Operation Cruisers' Aid[edit | edit source]
Standard Operating Procedures[edit | edit source]
Allocation and Reimbursement Process - This process is used to request an allocation and then reimbursement of GoFundMe monies
Delivery Boat Required Steps - This process must be followed by OCA boats to make sure we are staying compliant with the then-current governmental requirements
Management Team[edit | edit source]
Role | Name |
---|---|
Strategic & Operational Lead | Kylie Schischka |
Trinidad Lead | Jesse James |
Government and Non-GMO Liason | Bryony Palmer |
Donations/GoFundMe Coordinator | Kathleen Saunders |
Delivery Boat Coordination | Michael Pail |
Work Flow and Systems Creation | Michael Pail |
Social Media Coordination | Cori McCormick |
Operations Center Manager | Cori McCormick |
Information Management | Nick Brown |
Island / Point of Contact Liaison | Nikki Layton |
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