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How To Help After Hurricane Helene

With catastrophic flooding and winds of up to 140 mph, Hurricane Helene has had a devastating impact on Florida’s Big Bend area and much of the Southeastern U.S. Entire communities have been destroyed, and millions are without power across Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia, and more than 100 lives have been lost in the wake of this dangerous Category 4 hurricane. While we’re still waiting to understand the full effect of Hurricane Helene, there are plenty of ways to lend a hand to those in need right now.

If you want to contribute to Hurricane Helene relief efforts, here are some options for you:

Support the first responders

The American Red Cross has mobilized to respond to damage across the Southeast. If you’re interested in donating to support relief efforts, you can make a gift here. If you’d like to help hospitals ensure they have a stable blood supply, find a drive near you.
Heart to Heart International deployed an advance response team to Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas and are planning to send another team to help this week with a medical van. Additionally, they have assembled and are sending thousands of hygiene kits to their partners across the Southeast.
The Salvation Army is providing food, drinks, shelter, emotional and spiritual care, and other emergency services to hurricane survivors and rescue workers. Donate here to provide support.
Coast Guard Mutual Assistance (CGMA), the official relief society of the U.S. Coast Guard, provides disaster assistance and emergency financial support for Coast Guard members. Nearly 5,000 Coast Guard men, women, and families call the Tampa and St. Petersburg area home. As they have in countless disasters before, the U.S. Coast Guard will continue to provide search and rescue capabilities, assess the damage done by Hurricane Helene, and ensure ports can be safely reopened for the flow of maritime commerce. Donate here to support these heroes as they continue their tireless support of the community.

Find the helpers

There are plenty of nonprofits who have dedicated their time to relief efforts all over the state of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. To ensure your money is going to the right places, use tools like Charity Navigator, GuideStar, and TEOS (tax-exempt organization search) to evaluate the legitimacy and impact of the organizations and funds you’re donating to before you give.

The Volunteer Florida Foundation has launched the Florida Disaster Fund as the State of Florida’s official private fund to support communities as they recover from the storm and to aid response and recovery activities. Donate here.
Children’s Home Society of Florida (CCHS) has resources to help families discuss the impacts of Hurricane Helene with young children and is raising funds to help families impacted by Hurricane Helene. You can donate here.
Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina is mobilizing resources to provide relief to those impacted by the storm. Ten counties in their service area have experienced devastating flooding and are still without power. To donate to their fundraiser click here.
Made in partnership with the North Carolina United Way and the North Carolina state government, the North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund is collecting funds to support both immediate and long-term recovery efforts in communities impacted by Hurricane Helene. To donate to their relief efforts click here
East Tennessee Foundation‘s Neighbor to Neighbor Disaster Relief Fund is coordinating financial help to those impacted by Hurricane Helene in East Tennessee. This fund provides prompt and effective grants to empower local nonprofits and agencies to rescue and recover their own communities amid devastating impacts from Hurricane Helene.
The YMCA of East Tennessee is accepting donations of water, flashlights, batteries and portable phone chargers for flooding victims at all three of their locations. If you live close enough to donate supplies, please follow the instructions posted here.
To support those in Virginia impacted by Hurricane Helene, you can donate to the Virginia Disaster Relief Fund. Funds raised go to Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) in Virginia.
The American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN) has been activated to send hygiene kits, water, medication, and other humanitarian aid to communities in need of help. You can check out their active logistics needs to offer support or donate to support relief efforts.
GlobalGiving has launched a Hurricane Helene Relief Fund to help meet the emergency needs of people who have been affected by the storm and provide long-term recovery efforts. Donate here.
Direct Relief has positioned shipments of medical supplies across Florida and the Gulf Coast before the storm and are continuing to respond to requests for aid. They have also staged hurricane preparedness packs in Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, and across the U.S. Gulf Coast in preparation of Hurricane Helen’s landfall in projected affected areas. Donate here to support their response efforts.

Give people a place to stay

Many homes in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina have been flooded, and millions have lost power to their homes. One of the best ways to support communities who have lost their homes is to open up your own home to those in need. Airbnb lets people offer living accommodations to those who have been displaced. Learn more about the program and how to get involved here.

Keep an eye on this page for updates

As more and more nonprofits mobilize to send relief, supplies, and aid to those affected by Hurricane Helene, we’ll update this list. Check back periodically for updates.