How Can You Help The Fire Victims and the Clean-Up in San Pedro?

Sunday night there was a terrible fire on the highly populated, densely packed Middle Street in downtown San Pedro.  You can see the truly scary photos in Ambergris Today and San Pedro Sun.  THANK GOODNESS NO ONE WAS INJURED.  Yesterday morning, I posted pictures of the wreckage.

IMG_20160627_100308337

Massive efforts are underway on Ambergris Caye and all over Belize (The Tipsy Tuna in Placencia is holding a fundraiser for the victims in Placencia on July 2nd) to aid the 88 people affected by the fire.

People and groups are stepping up almost hourly and the mayor has pledged – with a huge team of volunteers – to have the area cleared and cleaned in 3 days, starting today.  The San Pedro Town Council has requested more volunteers – their facebook page is the best place for updates.  Stop by the Town Council building – or speak to one of the officers at the site to help.

Here are the approved organizations that are leading the effort:

SAN PEDRO LIONS’ CLUB

Photo by the San Pedro Food Bank

Photo by the San Pedro Food Bank

They are open all day – yesterday they collected clothes, toiletries, money, anything that people are willing to donate.  This morning, they are looking for boxes and canned goods in particular.  Monetary donations are ALWAYS welcome.  The Junior Lions collected over $3000 yesterday and more is coming in.

If you are donating money from abroad, the South Ambergris Caye Neighborhood Watch has a website and a way that you can make the donation.  This money will be donated to the Lions’ Club for direct donation to the victims.

There are Go-Fund-Me pages set up.  PLEASE make sure that you are comfortable with (know the person involved) – I don’t want to be paranoid but it always pays to be wary in these situations.  I’d suggest SACNW (above).

TROPIC AIR

If you are in Belize and would like to donate anything for the victims, you can drop the envelope/package off at your local Tropic Air terminal marked SAN PEDRO FIRE VICTIMS – the package will be delivered free to the appropriate spot.

BLUE WATER GRILL

“What we’re doing: The fire victims need help now, so we are donating $2,500 immediately to the Lions Club, so that they can buy food, toiletries, and stuff for kids – diapers, wipes, toys.
Challenge: We will match the first $2,500 in donations made at our restaurant or through our website from now through the end of July. 100% of the money we collect, plus our match, will go to help the victims of the fire.

bwg1
Why this picture? The man who makes our tarps for the restaurant lost everything in the fire. As you can see, his tarps are vital to our business on rainy days. He’s one of the scores of people who has helped make BWG a success. Now, it’s our turn to help him and the dozens of others who need it.”

I am going to head into town in a bit…so I’ll report back with changes and photos.  The town is pulling together in an incredible way, the entire country is…

Posted in: