How to Help Puerto Rico After Hurricanes
Every storm leaves the same pattern behind: flooded barrios, dark neighborhoods, dry faucets, and a flood of well-meaning help that often misses the mark. If you want your donation, your time, or your supplies to actually reach a family on the island, the how matters as much as the heart.
Start with cash, not stuff
Cash moves faster than cargo. Vetted relief groups already have warehouses, trucks, and local partners on the ground. A dollar sent today can buy water, fuel, or a tarp on the island tomorrow — and it doesn't sit in a port waiting to be sorted.
“After María, we watched containers of donated clothes rot at the docks while families three miles away had no water. Cash would have moved.”
Give like it matters
- ▸Donate directly to small, Puerto Rican-led nonprofits with low overhead.
- ▸Set up a recurring monthly gift — storms hit annually, recovery is constant.
- ▸Match your gift through your employer if they offer it.
- ▸Ask the org what they specifically need this week, not last month.
If you're sending supplies, send the right ones
Coordinate first. Showing up at a port with pallets of expired Halloween candy is not help — it's a logistics problem. Talk to a receiving organization before you ship. They'll tell you what's actually moving off shelves: bottled water, water filters, batteries, baby formula, diapers, tarps, and solar lamps.
What to send (and what not to)
- ▸Send: sealed bottled water, LifeStraws, D batteries, solar lanterns, baby formula.
- ▸Send: tarps, work gloves, bug spray, baby wipes, hygiene kits.
- ▸Skip: used clothing, perishable food, glass jars, anything expired.
- ▸Always label boxes clearly in English and Spanish.
Show up — virtually or in person
You don't have to fly down to help. Translators, grant writers, social media volunteers, and logistics coordinators are needed every storm season. If you can travel, go through an organization with a host plan and don't self-deploy. A volunteer without a place to sleep becomes one more person needing water.
Help us move water to Puerto Rico.
100% volunteer-run. Every dollar moves the mission.