GENEVA, Sept 10 (AFP) - Thousands of people in Grenada and other Caribbean islands devastated by Hurricane Ivan are in desperate need of food, clean water and shelter, the Red Cross said Friday as it appealed for 1.4 million dollars (1.14 million euros) to help the victims.
About 60,000 of Grenada's 95,000 inhabitants are homeless after one of the worst hurricanes to hit the region in half a century ripped through the island, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said.
Ninety percent of homes have been damaged while the island only has 47 shelters, it added in a statement.
The emergency funds are intended to provide shelter materials, food, blankets and other supplies for 10,000 people in the region over the next six months.
Twelve people have been confirmed killed in Grenada this week, while Ivan has been blamed for nine other deaths in Venezuela, the Dominican Republic and Tobago.
The Red Cross federation said the death toll was expected to rise in Grenada, which is now without water and electricity supplies, it added.
Red Cross teams from several countries have been deployed in Grenada, Cuba, Haiti, the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic.
They were also being stationed in Jamaica where the hurricane and its winds of more than 240 kilometres (150 miles) per hour were expected to strike on Friday.
Authorities there were preparing to evacuate up to half a million people.