Danger after disaster: why emergencies come with increased risks for women

After events such as Hurricane Beryl in the Caribbean, shelters offer refuge but no guarantee of safety to women and girls The grandchildren called the shelter Final Destination, after a favourite film. Tedica Alexander, 61, a resident of Union Island in St Vincent and the Grenadines, recalls with pride – and a tremor in her voice – how her nine grandchildren supported her and others at the Ashton community centre when Hurricane Beryl hit the area in July 2024. Alexander arrived after she was advised to seek shelter in Ashton, rather than at Clifton school as she had expected as it was closer. As the storm approached, the shelter quickly filled up. The building’s windows shattered, and flood waters rose above ankle height. “If it had lasted one more minute, the door would have given way,” she says. Her grandchildren stayed at the door, fighting against the wind and rain to let the latecomers in. At one point, she rested her head against a pillar, crying, while her six-year-old granddaughter whispered words of comfort. “We were the first to arrive,” says Alexander. In the end, 47 children and 147 adults sheltered there, including three people who used wheelchairs. “Everyone was pray