During the 2017 Caribbean hurricane season, YAG helped
43 vessels deliver around 100 tonnes of supplies.
It aims to make it as easy as possible for yacht owners to
help, by requesting that they transport supplies (even part
way to a destination), sponsor supplies or donate money.
“I wanted to find an impactful way to help the hurricane
victims,” says Doug Frye, the owner of Enzo. “So often we feel
helpless when natural disasters take
place, and although money is badly
needed, sometimes it just doesn’t feel
like enough. We wanted to have a
measurable, positive impact on
those suffering as a result of the
hurricanes.”
Working with YAG, Enzo was
able to deliver 3,175kg in aid,
including 1,000 meals, 23 tarps, 1,500
tools, 135 hygiene kits and 750 water
filters – each of which can filter
roughly four million litres of water.
Enzo is a 19 metre sailing yacht – but
the big boys were there in droves also.
Lady J, at 43 metres, delivered aid to the
US Virgin Islands, taking everything
from baby formula to machetes. Forty-
eight metre Va Bene left Palma loaded
with relief provisions bound for
Dominica, then went to Antigua to
restock and return to Dominica with
even more. Both 54.7 metre Sequel P and
61.3 metre Katharine were stuffed to the gunwales with
supplies, including, in Katharine’s case, 5,200 jars of baby
food that went to Anguilla.
Still, YAG estimates that only 30 per cent of all the 30
metre-plus yachts that went to the Caribbean this season
got involved in the recovery efort. “Considering that 100
per cent of yachts who had 2017-18 Caribbean cruising
plans were afected, that’s not a lot,” says Forderer. “We can
do much better!”
Many owners and captains who wanted to help
contacted their brokers and yacht agents. Yachting
companies wanted to give back, too, and were extremely
supportive of the members of their fleet who took up the
cause. Burgess says it was overwhelmed by the response it
received from its owners and captains, many of whom led
the way in finding proactive ways to assist.
This was true ofGrey Matters, whose crew started a grass
roots efort by pinning up a notice at Lauderdale Marine
Top and above left:
Hurricane Irma batters
Miami last September
with 100mph-plus winds
and storm surges. Above
and left: YachtAid Global
volunteers co-ordinate the
relief effort, which involved
using dozens of private
yachts to deliver aid to
hurricane victims“ALTHOUGH MONEY IS BADLY
NEEDED, SOMETIMES IT JUST
DOESN’T FEEL LIKE ENOUGH. WE
WANTEDTOHAVEAMEASURABLE
IMPACT ON THOSE SUFFERING”“IT WAS WHEN WE TRANSITED
THROUGH THE VIRGIN ISLANDS
AND SAW THERE WERE NO
LIGHTS... I WAS SHOCKED AT
THE COMPLETE DEVASTATION”169