---
title: Richard Branson Shares Photos of Irma’s Destruction, and Is Now Raising Money for the Victims
description: Richard Branson chose to ride out Hurricane Irma in a wine cellar on his private island, Necker Island. He is now raising money to help Irma victims.
authors:
  - name: Rob Wile
    url: https://money.com/author/rob-wile/
    at_money_since: 2017
    articles: 191
    covers:
      - Lifestyle
      - Business
      - Career Advice
      - Economy and Politics
      - Education
      - Housing
      - Identity Theft
      - Insurance
      - Investing
      - Personal Finance
      - Retirement
      - Shopping
      - Taxes
      - Technology
    social:
      - https://x.com/rjwile
    former_staff: true
published: '2017-09-11T13:38:36.000Z'
modified: '2024-04-17T06:47:07.000Z'
section: Lifestyle
tags:
  - Caribbean
  - Charity
  - hurricane irma
  - Richard Branson
word_count: 247
canonical: https://money.com/hurricane-irma-richard-branson-caribbean-virgin-islands/
type: Article
source: structured-blocks
---

> **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/).

![Sir Richard Branson Launches New Virgin Australia Route To Hong Kong](https://img.money.com/2017/09/richardbransonirma-em-808593044.jpg)
*Sir Richard Branson*

Richard Branson chose to ride out Hurricane Irma in a [wine cellar on his private island](https://money.com/richard-branson-hurricane-irma-necker-island/) in the British Virgin Islands (BVI). Now that the storm has moved on to Florida, the wealthy entrepreneur behind the Virgin brands is sharing photos of the devastation while warning of "civil unrest."

"The boats are piled up like matchsticks in the harbour," Branson wrote in an [update on Virgin's website](https://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/update-after-hurricane-irma-bvi). "Huge cargo ships were thrown out of the water and into rocks. Resorts have been decimated. The houses have their roofs blown off; even some churches where people sheltered have lost roofs."

Branson has been Tweeting photos and observations in the aftermath of the storm, and his company is [rallying a fundraising effort](https://www.virgin.com/unite/bvi-community-support-appeal) to help victims. "The BVI needs an enormous amount of help to recover from the widespread devastation," Branson wrote. "Our thoughts are with all the people and regions hit by Hurricane Irma, and all those in the US communities currently facing the storm."

<!-- omitted unsupported block: embed-twitter -->

<!-- omitted unsupported block: embed-twitter -->

<!-- omitted unsupported block: embed-twitter -->

<!-- omitted unsupported block: embed-twitter -->

<!-- omitted unsupported block: embed-twitter -->

<!-- omitted unsupported block: embed-twitter -->

<!-- omitted unsupported block: embed-twitter -->

Branson's son Sam echoed concerns about "civil unrest," writing on [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/p/BY3MgGZFuCU/) that anyone traveling in with aid should have "security of some kind."

The [*New York Times* reported](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/10/world/americas/irma-caribbean-st-martin.html) that at least 27 deaths in the Caribbean have come as a result of Irma, and that people "insist that the death toll is much higher." Supplies of food, gas, and safe drinking water are reportedly [in short supply](https://www.nbcnews.com/video/residents-of-st-thomas-in-u-s-virgin-islands-face-shortages-after-irma-1043760707838) in the Virgin Islands and other parts of the Caribbean.

```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@graph": [
    {
      "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
      "@id": "https://money.com/hurricane-irma-richard-branson-caribbean-virgin-islands/#breadcrumb",
      "itemListElement": [
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 1,
          "name": "Home",
          "item": "https://money.com"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 2,
          "name": "Lifestyle",
          "item": "https://money.com/lifestyle/"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 3,
          "name": "Travel",
          "item": "https://money.com/travel/"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 4,
          "name": "Richard Branson Shares Photos of Irma’s Destruction, and Is Now Raising Money for the Victims"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "@type": "WebSite",
      "@id": "https://money.com/#website",
      "url": "https://money.com",
      "name": "Money",
      "publisher": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/#organization"
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "WebPage",
      "@id": "https://money.com/hurricane-irma-richard-branson-caribbean-virgin-islands/#webpage",
      "url": "https://money.com/hurricane-irma-richard-branson-caribbean-virgin-islands/",
      "name": "Richard Branson Shares Photos of Irma’s Destruction, and Is Now Raising Money for the Victims",
      "isPartOf": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/#website"
      },
      "datePublished": "2017-09-11T13:38:36.000Z",
      "mainEntity": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/hurricane-irma-richard-branson-caribbean-virgin-islands/"
      },
      "inLanguage": "en-US",
      "breadcrumb": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/hurricane-irma-richard-branson-caribbean-virgin-islands/#breadcrumb"
      },
      "dateModified": "2024-04-17T06:47:07.000Z"
    },
    {
      "@type": "Article",
      "headline": "Richard Branson Shares Photos of Irma’s Destruction, and Is Now Raising Money for the Victims",
      "articleSection": "Lifestyle",
      "image": [
        {
          "@type": "ImageObject",
          "url": "https://img.money.com/2017/09/richardbransonirma-em-808593044.jpg",
          "width": 4168,
          "height": 2653,
          "caption": "Sir Richard Branson Launches New Virgin Australia Route To Hong Kong"
        }
      ],
      "author": [
        {
          "@type": "Person",
          "name": "Rob Wile",
          "url": "https://money.com/author/rob-wile/",
          "@id": "https://money.com/author/rob-wile/#author",
          "sameAs": [
            "https://x.com/rjwile"
          ]
        }
      ],
      "publisher": "https://money.com/#organization",
      "datePublished": "2017-09-11T13:38:36.000Z",
      "description": "Richard Branson chose to ride out Hurricane Irma in a wine cellar on his private island, Necker Island. He is now raising money to help Irma victims.",
      "abstract": "Richard Branson chose to ride out Hurricane Irma in a wine cellar on his private island, Necker Island. He is now raising money to help Irma victims.",
      "@id": "https://money.com/hurricane-irma-richard-branson-caribbean-virgin-islands/",
      "inLanguage": "en-US",
      "dateModified": "2024-04-17T06:47:07.000Z",
      "wordCount": 247,
      "keywords": [
        "Caribbean",
        "Charity",
        "hurricane irma",
        "Richard Branson"
      ],
      "about": [
        {
          "@type": "Thing",
          "name": "Lifestyle",
          "sameAs": [
            "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifestyle"
          ]
        },
        {
          "@type": "Thing",
          "name": "Travel",
          "sameAs": [
            "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travel"
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}
```
