Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.--Pan American Development Foundation Donation of Portable Household Gen

Today marked the donation of 15 portable household generators to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for distribution to families in Crooked Island who were severely affected by the passing of Hurricane Joaquin in late 2015. The donation is an important collaboration between Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (Royal Caribbean), the Pan American Development Foudation (PADF), and The Bahamas.

Hurricane Joaquin, a Category 4 storm, hit The Bahamas in October 2015. Storm surges and heavy rainfall caused extensive flooding in southern Long Island, Acklins, and Crooked Island, severely damaging housing, roads, medical clinics, communications systems, coastal ecosystems, and water and sanitation infrastructure. Initial estimates place the damage incurred by Hurricane Joaquin to be well over USD $60 million.

This assistance will allow hurricane-affected families to purchase and store food, as well as continue normal daily activities past sunset. This donation will be directed towards Crooked Island’s most socioeconomically vulnerable families as identified by NEMA.

Over the years, Royal Caribbean has contributed significantly and visibly to the well-being of communities in Latin America and the Caribbean through its partnership with PADF. PADF, an affiliate of the Organization of American States (OAS), was founded in 1962 with the mission of implementing socio-economic projects to benefit the most vulnerable and excluded people in Latin America and the Caribbean. PADF makes this possible thanks to private-public alliances and investment in social enterprises. Since 2007, Royal Caribbean has donated more than $2 million to PADF to fund disaster management, community strengthening and sustainable livelihoods in the region.