Toronto woman helps Hurricane Irma evacuees with air mattresses from Canadian Tire

The woman went to the Canadian Tire to buy all mattresses for the evacuees but the popular store refused to sell more than 10 per person.

Cheryl Basser told Global News: "Although they had 190 in stock and agreed they had 190, they said they had a maximum (to sell) of 10 per person."

“They have 1,000 evacuees but there’s no possibility of having enough beds,” Basser added.

Basser was not alone in the whole arrangement but aptly supported by her husband.

Her husband was in the task to arrange the trucks to send as many as 300 mattresses with the belief that Canadian Tire will sell their full stock.

All the mattresses were on the sale at $60.

“We explained it was for a humanitarian cause. We weren’t looking for a discount, we weren’t looking for a donation," Basser told Global News.

Though the store did not respond to the call made by Global News, they issued a statement which reads: "As a company with strong roots in communities across Canada, we understand the urgency to provide support to those impacted by natural disasters. We have been in contact with the customer supporting the hurricane evacuation relief efforts and we are working together to provide the equipment needed. We commend their efforts to help our U.S. neighbours impacted by the hurricane.”

Through a mail, Basser was informed that Canadian Tire is willing to ship 226 mattresses to Georgia for the benefit of the evacuees.

Basser informed Global News that Canadian Tire agreed to carry the full cost of the mattresses and the transportation.

After pummeling the Caribbean Islands, the powerful Hurricane Irma is lashing Cuba with strong winds and heavy rainfall, recent reports said.

The category five hurricane made landfall on the Camaguey Archipelago, off the north-eastern coast, late on Friday.

Irma has so far killed at least 20 people in the Caribbean, while destroying some of the popular tourist destinations.

Meanwhile, the Hurricane's path has forced the Florida government to warn 5.6 million people, or 25 percent of the state's population to leave before the calamity strike the US state.

This is also the first time in decades that Cuba has been hit by a category five hurricane.

Provinces like Camaguey, Ciego de Avila, Sancti Spiritus, Villa Clara and Matanzas have been placed under warnings, BBC reported.

Following the onslaught, the Barbuda Island is said to be barely habitable, while BBC news quoted officials as saying that the French territory of St Martin is almost destroyed.

Irma is said to be the most powerful Atlantic storm in a decade and had wind speeds of 295km/h (185mph).

Following the devastation, Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne said about 95 percent of the buildings had suffered some damage. 

"The island is literally under water. In fact, I'm of the view that, as it stands now, Barbuda is barely habitable," he was quoted in the media as saying.

The hurricane also destroyed St Martin's airport, the third largest in the Caribbean.

Meanwhile, residents are bracing for another hurricane, Jose, which is presently a category four storm.

It is expected to exacerbate the already grim situation and hamper rescue and relief efforts.

(Reporting by Souvik Ghosh)