In what can only be described as an apocalyptic turn of events, in the past few weeks the world has been hit with an onslaught of natural disasters ranging from hurricanes to wildfires to earthquakes. Although all of these instances have caused extreme trauma, Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma have undoubtedly caused the most damage to date.

Hurricane Harvey was ranked as a category 4 hurricane on a scale of 5 and was the first major hurricane to make contact with U.S. land since 2004. It arrived in Texas on August 25th and lasted until the 29th causing an immense amount of damage to Texas and the surrounding areas. It is estimated that the storm caused between $25 billion and $35 billion in damage, including the destruction of over 160,000 homes in Houston.

Rapidly riding in on Hurricane Harvey’s coat tails was Hurricane Irma, which ravaged Florida. Forming only a day after Harvey, Irma hit the United States on September 10th as a Category 4.  Irma has proven to cause even more damage than Hurricane Harvey – United States and other countries combined.

Between these two immense hurricanes destroying two major metropolitans: Houston and Miami, the damage will undoubtedly have a long lasting effect on the United States.

Although it can be easy to take advantage of living in the Midwest: a region largely free of natural disasters, it is extremely important to aid those who have been affected by these events in any way possible. A simple way to do your part is to donate to charities that are providing relief efforts in these areas. These include nationwide charities like The Red Cross , as well as local ones such as Houston SPCA and the Houston Food Bank.