Letter to editor – ShelterBox responding to disasters in Morocco and Libya

Dear Editor,

 Last month we woke to news of a powerful earthquake hitting the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. A few days later, Storm Daniel caused widespread flooding across northeast Libya. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced from their homes. People have lost livelihoods, belongings, and loved ones. 

At the international disaster relief charity, ShelterBox, we are supporting people affected by each of these disasters.  

We are distributing aid to around 20 mountain communities. Alongside our partner Association Le Grand Atlas, Rotary in Morocco, and volunteers from local villages, we’re distributing tents, thermal blankets, solar lights, and kitchen sets to communities living at high altitudes whose homes have been damaged or reduced to rubble.  

In Libya, entire neighbourhoods have been swept away by torrents of water. Thousands of people are without the basics needed to survive like shelter and clean water.

Access to Libya for foreign nationals is challenging so we’ve partnered with ACTED to get aid to people who need it as quickly as we can. We’re providing a grant to our partner for winter clothing, thermal blankets, and heaters so people can protect themselves and their families from the cold as winter looms. 

This aid may seem modest, but it can make a huge difference to displaced people left with very little, especially with winter temperatures around the corner.

Our responses in Morocco and Libya wouldn’t be possible without our supporters, whose donations help us be ready for the next disaster – wherever in the world that may be.

 Alice Jefferson

Head of Emergency Responses

ShelterBox