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Cyclone Harold Response

RICHARD HACKETT • May 22, 2020

May 20, 2020 Update on Aid Impact in Vanautu


Sea Mercy’s primary goal in disaster response work has been, and always will be about helping to meet the needs of those devastated by a natural disaster and to honor our partners, donors and volunteers who make it happen. As wonderful and rewarding it might be to see statistics, financial and visual evidence of the impact your aid had on an individual, a village or an island nation, we rarely fully understand or grasp the actual health impact the clean water we provided had on a family or what diseases were prevented by it. We can provide the first three, but to understand the last one will require you to use your imagination as you place yourself in their situation.


Statistics

From a purely statistical perspective, we can tell you that based on the overall number of Sawyer and Wateroam Filters that we provided and the amount of clean drinking water each could provide, over 5,000 families are being served. When we add the production capacity that our Spectra LB2800 Desalination unit can produce and the barge distribution plan we have in place, the additional clean water support it can provide is life changing for thousands of additional families.


Financial

We can share from a financial perspective that Sea Mercy we purchased and delivered over $171,000 US in emergency aid to the people of Vanuatu. Most of those purchases were focused on securing and delivering clean water to those most needed areas. For complete transparency, we have included our current financial statement for your review.


Visual

We do our best to share the photo and video reports we receive, it can be difficult to send from remote and often devastated locations. When available, we try to share images that might provide a brief glimpse of a family using one of our donated Sawyer Filters, or a village waiting in line to fill their water jugs from one of our Wateroam Filters, or whole communities gathered on the beach in front of a barge as they watch our Spectra LB2800 Desalination unit magically convert thousands of litres of undrinkable saltwater into fresh water for them.


Our Donors

There is another aspect of what we do that is often completely invisible to everyone except those of us in Sea Mercy leadership. It is the incredible financial sacrifices made by individuals and organizations who not only desire to help the people in the South Pacific, but believe in Sea Mercy and our incredible volunteers who find the best way to use those personal donations for maximum impact and to reach the people in need.


Thank you!


Future Aid For Vanuatu

With the recent completion of Phase III of our Disaster Response efforts, Sea Mercy has expended all currently available funds for the above equipment and supplies. There are many more needs in Vanuatu that we would love to meet as the island nation shifts from Response to Recovery efforts. If you would like to help us continue to help them, please make a donation through the below button.

Maui Fire Response - SV Oceans

By RICHARD HACKETT • 13 Sep, 2023
Lahaina, Maui - August 8th - Whether the emergency is local or international, Sea Mercy vessels and volunteers are always ready and willing to respond to meet the need.

SMART Rain-Tarp (for shelter & water)

By RICHARD HACKETT • 20 Jan, 2022
Imagine the logistical savings in precious fuel and disaster aid space if the first delivery by a disaster response transport vessel was two lightweight containers per family. Containers that would provide each family with emergency shelter, provide them with a renewable and ongoing drinking water and allow all future transport efforts to focus on delivering valuable supplies to rebuild their homes and communities (instead of water). That is a SMART solution.

Sight & Light - Oyster World Rally

By RICHARD HACKETT • 20 Jan, 2022
8 years ago, Oyster Yachts approached Sea Mercy with the question of how Sea Mercy could help their World Rally members to 'Sail with a greater purpose' during their circumnavigation of the world? Not just in the South Pacific, but at every stop and anchorage. Our Sight & Light program was a perfect fit and the past World Rally since then, their members have carried Sea Mercy's Sight & Light Kits to every country stop around the world.

International Yachting Community - Thank you!

By RICHARD HACKETT • 21 Dec, 2021
We wanted to take a moment to thank the silent heroes that have allowed Sea Mercy to have the incredible success and impact on the people living on the remote islands of the South Pacific. Without your support and belief in our crazy "Sailing with a greater purpose" concept since 2012, the thousands of remote island communities that we now serve would have little hope or resources available to them in their battle for a future.

Remembering the past in Vanuatu - Thatch Roofing

By RICHARD HACKETT • 07 Jul, 2020
With the possible arrival of metal roofing to replace destroyed roofs and homes still months, perhaps years away, the people living in Vanuatu are returning to the 'old ways' to rebuild their devastated communities following Cyclone Harold. Coconut Thatch weaving workshops are ongoing in every TC Harold affected community on West Santo Island. With few tarps provided since the cyclone (Covid-19 transport restrictions), traditional knowledge exchange among the islands of Santo, Tanna, Ambrym is real resilience. Thatch roofing is renewable, available and quite durable. It also is cooler in the hot times.

Making Every Donation Count - Effective Training

By RICHARD HACKETT • 06 Jun, 2020
Sea Mercy respects and values every donation that is given to help us meet the needs following a natural disaster and develop a plan for success to ensure that. Our view is not about the amount of aid that is delivered, but the effectiveness of the aid that we deliver. Although well meaning, so much international aid is either unneeded or sits unused through a lack of training. Our goal is to try and think through the challenges before us and develop a plan that will overcome them before the aid arrives.

Sea Mercy's Desalination Unit in Vanuatu

By RICHARD HACKETT • 19 May, 2020
It is exciting to see video coming back from Vanuatu showing Sea Mercy's desalination unit providing clean water for the devastated remote villages following Cyclone Harold. Patiently waiting their turn, the children bring their bottles to the front of the barge where salt water from the ocean is turned into fresh drinking water for a village and family. When we are done in this village, the barge will move to another and repeat this life changing and disease preventing process.

'No Plastic' approach to delivering clean water

By RICHARD HACKETT • 21 Mar, 2020
Sea Mercy is an NGO that is always stepping outside of the ‘status quo’ circle when it comes to our disaster response, health care and economic service deliver programs for the remote islands of the South Pacific. Our effective, self-sustaining and no plastic approach for delivering emergency drinking water following a natural disaster is Water Filtration, Water Generation, and Water Catchment.

Sea Bridge One

By RICHARD HACKETT • 21 Oct, 2019
When a non-profit charity asks you to design a low cost, versatile and sustainable service delivery vessel to serve thousands of forgotten remote island communities spread across the South Pacific, you realize the design needs are far different. Such a request would not be an easy assignment for any naval architect or builder; however award-winning sailing yacht architect Gerard Dykstra of Dykstra Naval Architects and shipbuilder Louis Hamming of Vitters Shipyard came together to donate their time and expertise to design the multipurpose Sea Bridge One vessel for Sea Mercy.
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