As the Caribbean and southeastern United States endured one of the worst hurricane seasons in memory, Catholic relief agencies provided emergency aid to some of the hardest-hit areas and planned to donate significant funds to long-term recovery efforts.

In Haiti, Tropical Storm Jeanne killed at least 90 people Sept. 19 before heading out to sea. The storm, which at times has been at hurricane level, came just days after Hurricane Ivan swept through the Caribbean and southern United States leaving a death toll of at least 70 people in the Caribbean and 52 in the United States, according to The Associated Press.

In the United States, Ivan battered the Gulf Coast, causing an estimated $3 billion to $6 billion in insured losses in Pensacola and other parts of Florida's panhandle as well as in a significant portion of Alabama and areas of Louisiana and Mississippi.

The effects of the deadliest U.S. storm since 1999 reached nine states, leaving more than 1.8 million people without power and causing flooding from northern Alabama to Virginia.

To help those on the already devastated island of Haiti, Catholic Relief Services, the U.S. church's overseas aid and development agency, reallocated $25,000 from existing projects in the country to help storm victims.

Meanwhile, those living on the Caribbean islands and in Florida continued to recover from the massive damage caused by Hurricane Charley in mid-August and Hurricane Frances just three weeks later.

To date, Catholic Charities USA has sent $40,000 in emergency relief grants to three local Catholic Charities agencies in Florida to support their recovery efforts in the wake of recent hurricanes.

And more help was on the way, according to Catholic Charities USA spokeswoman Shelley Borysiewicz. She told Catholic News Service Sept. 15 that more than $915,000 had been donated so far for hurricane victims.

She said the initial emergency grants to the diocesan agencies sounded rather small, but "the Catholic Charities niche (in disaster relief) is long-term recovery. Hundreds of thousands of dollars will be going out for that."

Catholic Charities of Venice said it was already helping more than 20,000 hurricane victims daily after Charley, and Frances took an additional toll on the residents of several counties in the diocese.

The Venice agency established six distribution centers for emergency supplies and asked donors to bring food, bottled water and other necessities to any of those sites or five other designated drop-off sites around the diocese.

Richard Turcotte, chief executive officer of Catholic Charities in Miami, said the agency immediately set up three parish-based relief centers in poorer neighborhoods in Broward County to provide basics of food, water and cash for families with emergency needs.

At least 50 church-owned properties in the Orlando Diocese reported some hurricane damage, ranging from minor leaks to flooding and damaged roofs.

Catholic Relief Services sent $10,000 each to Grenada and the Bahamas for immediate emergency relief and $30,000 to Jamaica. It also sent $70,000 to the Cuban Catholic charitable agency, Caritas Cubana, in August after Charley ripped through the Havana and Pinar del Rio provinces. According to CRS, in Cuba alone, damage from Hurricanes Charley and Ivan was estimated at $1 billion.

In Grenada, Hurricane Ivan left 60,000 people homeless, representing two-thirds of the country's entire population.

Lynn Renner, who was part of the CRS emergency team in the Grenada region, said he had never seen anything like what he witnessed in Grenada. "The destruction is so complete, every building or structure has been touched in some way," he said.

Bishop Vincent Darius of St. George's in Grenada said his entire diocese would have to be rebuilt, as every church had been damaged by the most powerful storm to hit the island in a decade. Authorities estimated that 90 percent of the buildings on the island were damaged or destroyed as the hurricane passed directly over the island Sept. 7.

"I think people are still in a state of shock. ... Many are now waking up to the seriousness of the situation," Bishop Darius said in a cell phone interview.

The bishop said residents might be shaken but "we have not lost our faith."

"Life has changed, and people are now talking about living as one in community," he said.

The succession of storms in the Caribbean has "left people scrambling, especially those already vulnerable due to poverty," said Jed Hoffman, CRS regional director for Latin America. "The challenge in the coming days and months is not just meeting immediate needs but also working with local communities as they begin the process of rebuilding."

Hurricane Ivan forced Bishop Gordon Bennett to change his plans to be installed as bishop of Mandeville, Jamaica, on Sept. 26. The former Baltimore auxiliary attended a farewell prayer service in Baltimore Sept. 11, the day the hurricane hit Jamaica.

He said he would take over as bishop of Mandeville Sept. 24 but his first focus will now be to assess damage to church properties, including the cathedral, and begin to raise funds and make repairs.

"All of that is while still trying to promote a pastoral agenda that meets the spiritual needs of the people," he said.

Catholic Charities USA was continuing to channel hurricane relief donations through local Catholic agencies in U.S. states affected by hurricanes Charley, Frances and Ivan. Catholic Relief Services was doing the same in affected nations in the Caribbean.

Contributions to Catholic Charities USA can be made by telephone at: (800) 919-9338; online at: www.catholiccharitiesinfo.org; or by mail to: Catholic Charities USA, 2004 Hurricanes Fund, P.O. Box 25168, Alexandria, VA 22313-9788. Checks should carry a notation on the memo line "2004 hurricanes fund" or name a specific hurricane if desired.

Donations to Catholic Relief Services can by made by telephone at: (877) HELPCRS (435-7277); online at: www.crs.org/make_a_gift/individual/index.cfm; or by mail to: Catholic Relief Services, P.O. Box 17090, Baltimore, MD 21203-7090. Checks should carry a notation on the memo line "hurricanes/Caribbean region relief" or name a specific hurricane if desired.