The Pacific island of Saipan has always been plagued by powerful storms but Typhoon Yutu packed more force than almost anyone expected. “It was like the end of the world for me and my family,” resident Marie Cris said of the late October typhoon. “The walls are concrete but you could feel the walls shake…
After Yutu’s Brutal Punch, Samaritan’s Purse Distributes Relief to Islanders
Volunteers Begin Helping California Homeowners After Devastating Fire
SIGN UP TO VOLUNTEER IN CALIFORNIA There wasn’t much time to flee Paradise as the Camp Fire roared across Butte County, California. Residents reported harrowing escapes with their shoes heating up under them as they abandoned cars stuck on melting tires. Before it was fully contained, the Camp Fire burned more than 14,000 homes and…
Samaritan’s Purse Volunteers at Work in Storm-Torn Southeast
Samaritan’s Purse teams are on the ground in Selma, Alabama, and Griffin, Georgia, after a violent and deadly storm system swept across the Southeast on Thursday night, Jan. 12. Two Disaster Relief Units—tractor trailers stocked with equipment and supplies—are in position in the two locations. Volunteers started work in both Alabama and Georgia on Sunday,…
Clean Water
New Homes and Full Hearts
Two and a half years ago, Josh Jones sat on his couch unconcerned about the reports of an EF4 tornado making its way toward Mayfield, Kentucky. A lightning bolt suddenly struck just outside the window, jolting Josh off the couch and into his truck. This was no ordinary storm. “It was like something I had…
Flood Relief Wraps Up in the Northeast
In early July, historic rainfall in the Northeast prompted severe flooding that devastated homeowners. Samaritan’s Purse responded in the communities of Highland Falls, New York, and Barre, Vermont, and their surrounding areas to provide much-needed relief. Over the past weeks, dedicated volunteers have worked to mud out homes as well as remove soaked drywall and…
Helping Heartland Communities Recover After Deadly Tornadoes
Rhett Salisbury pushed with all his strength against the bedroom door to protect his family as an EF3 tornado slammed into Minden, Iowa. He and his wife, Faith, and their three young kids ran for cover as debris whipped violently through their home. “I held onto my kids for dear life—they were screaming and crying.…
Volunteers Working in Texas After Imelda’s Deluge
“We bought this house last July,” homeowner Kandace Higginbotham explained as she looked around at the water damage to her residence. “Just long enough to make two or three growth marks [for her children] on the wall. This was our first family home.” Kandace and her family were home together when the remnants of Tropical…
Samaritan’s Purse Deploys to Mississippi After Deadly Storms Spin Through the South
Samaritan’s Purse North American Ministries (NAM) is deploying to DeSoto County, Mississippi, where Governor Phil Bryant has declared a state of emergency after two tornadoes caused extensive damage on Saturday morning (Jan. 11). Billy Graham Rapid Response Team chaplains will be joining us on the ground for this response as well. The National Weather Service…
Edward Graham Encourages New Yorkers After Flooding
Not in 40 years had Dexter Bunte seen such devastation in his community of Highland Falls, New York. Until July 9 the stream that ran by his house was merely a harmless feature adding to the area’s quaint beauty. “It was a babbling brook. My kids used to get excited when it would rise a…












