CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WVEC) --The Volcan de Fuego erupted Sunday in Guatemala, and 99 children are confirmed dead and nearly 200 are missing,
Assistant Rabban Bill Hoggard and the Shriners Hospital for Children want to help.
“When we’re out raising funds, this is what it’s for is to take care of this, the hospital expenses, the transportation expenses, to get these kids cared for and then to transfer them back,” said Hoggard.
The Shriners have 22 hospitals across the United States that focus on helping children. When disaster strikes, they step up. Six children couldn’t get necessary help in Guatemala, so they were flown to Galveston, Texas for their burns.
“There were not the resources we need to treat these children, and like I said before, Galveston is a hospital that specializes in children and burns,” said Hoggard.
The children arrived in Galveston at 4:40 a.m. Thursday morning. A guardian went with each child for free, to console them.
“It’s a scary thing to have been burned, and then put them on a giant-sized plane and fly them to places they’ve never been before in their lives,” said Hoggard.
It's unknown how long recovery time might take.
“We had ambulances and everything, doctors on standby. As soon as the airplane touched down, the ambulances transported the kids to our Galveston hospital. It’s emotional just getting them here, and we get attached to them, and we’re not even the ones that are taking care of them at the hospitals. But our doctors are very dedicated to what they do,” said Hoggard.
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