Eight Regional Volunteers Deployed to Assist in Response to Major Storms

Diane Sargent of Lockport and Pete Swales of Springville
fill out paperwork prior to deploying to Pensacola, FL to
do Disaster Assessment in flooded regions

The American Red Cross response to this week’s devastating floods and tornadoes stretches across 13 states where Red Cross workers are providing shelter, food, health and mental health services to people impacted by the storm.

As people begin the monumental task this weekend of starting to clean up their neighborhoods, the Red Cross will be handing out relief supplies like brooms, buckets, gloves, shovels, rakes and tarps throughout many affected communities.

Disaster Mental Health volunteers Marianna Elliott of Hamburg and Sue Olexenko of Amherst will be deploying to Arkansas on Saturday to provide emotional support for affected residents there. A total of eight volunteers from across the 17-county Western New York/Finger Lakes Region have been deployed to assist in the Red Cross response these to these devastating storms. A full list is below.

NAME	HOMETOWN	DEPLOYMENT LOCATION	DATE	ACTIVITY
Robert Barton	Savannah	Mississippi	05/01	Mass Care/Feeding
Marianna Elliott	Hamburg	Arkansas	05/03	Disaster Mental Health
Sue Olexenko	Amherst	Arkansas	05/03	Disaster Mental Health
Dr. Alani Santos	Brighton	Arkansas	05/01	Disaster Health Services
Diane Sargent	Lockport	Florida	05/02	Disaster Assessment
Ferris Todd	Canandaigua	Arkansas	05/02	Disaster Mental Health
Pete Swales	Springville	Florida	05/02	Disaster Assessment
Tom Wallace	Elmira	Mississippi	05/02	Disaster Mental Health

Red Cross workers are helping people in Florida, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and North Carolina. Hundreds of people are staying in Red Cross and community shelters in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kansas, Mississippi and North Carolina. Red Cross workers also are providing meals, health and mental health services.

  

In total, more than 1,200 trained Red Cross workers and 60 emergency vehicles are helping in the hardest hit communities. As of Friday, volunteers have already served more than 70,000 meals and snacks, and handed out 11,000 essential relief items to people in need.

The Red Cross will be on the ground for weeks supporting those affected. As people begin to recover from the storm, Red Cross workers will join with local community partners to provide additional services. For example, in some areas the Red Cross will help to open community resource centers bringing all of the organizations and agencies together in one convenient location to help those affected. Red Cross caseworkers will also meet one-on-one with people to create recovery plans, navigate paperwork and locate help from other agencies.

HOW TO HELP Those who would like to help people affected by disasters like tornadoes, floods and other crises can make a donation to American Red Cross Disaster Relief. People can donate by visiting www.redcross.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. These donations enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small.