High Holidays with Hurricane Harvey in Houston

Editors note--This article was written by Red Cross volunteer Steven Schwartz of Buffalo for the Jewish Journal of WNY.

“Hurricane Harvey TX, DR397-18, hit Texas hard from Corpus Christi all the way up the coast to the Louisiana state line, and inward as far north as Austin in some areas. Flooding in some areas was as much as 8 feet, and in the Corpus Christi area, more structural damage than flooding occurred. “ (Sarah Perkins, Pittsford, NY,  Red Cross Disaster Assessment Lead)

When Hurricane Harvey made landfall as a Category 4 Storm in Texas early in August, 2017, over one-half million residents were evacuated and 34,000 stayed in 240 Red Cross and partner shelters.  On September 22, I deployed to Texas, joining 160 Red Cross volunteers from Western & Central New York.

I have been a Red Cross volunteer for over seven years, during which time I have deployed to tornadoes in Alabama, storms in Connecticut, wildfires in Northern California, Superstorm Sandy in NY, Hurricane Matthew in North Carolina and “Snowvember” here at home. These efforts literally fulfill the commandment of “Tikkun Olam”, repairing the world. 

A child's thank you letter to the Red Cross in Houston

In Houston, I served as the Lead in Staff & Volunteer Relations, helping to anticipate and resolve problems between and among volunteers.  With thousands of volunteers traveling to a place most had never been, doing things they might not have done, with people they didn’t know, and under difficult circumstances, the major problems were relatively few.  Volunteers worked 12-14 hour days, 7-10 days in a row without a day off.  Many lived in staff shelters.  Despite these hardships and stresses, quality services were delivered and local residents responded gratefully, both personally and in cards and letters.

I had wanted to attend Yom Kippur services while in Houston.  I met Diane Levine, Red Cross Spiritual Care Lead on the disaster, who referred me to Rabbi Steve Morgen from Congregation Beth Yeshurun, the largest Conservative synagogue in the U.S.  He explained that the synagogue had been completely flooded, and although Torah scrolls and other books and materials had been saved, the building was totally unusable.  Joel Osteen had then offered his Lakewood Church to Beth Yeshurun for their High Holiday services.

Jai Lev Dravich (l) and Steven Schwartz at Kol Nidre Services

Jai Lev Dravich, from Santa Cruz, CA, with whom I had worked during Hurricane Matthew in North Carolina, and I attended this remarkable Kol Nidre service.  The huge arena (formerly a pro-hockey stadium) seated thousands of worshippers.  Images of the synagogue’s beautiful tapestries were projected on the sides and back of the bimah.  This was also Rabbi David Rosen’s last Kol Nidre service before his retirement after 22 years as Senior Rabbi.  After his sermon, in an emotional tribute, he was lauded for his wonderful work, and it was announced that the new entrance to the rebuilt synagogue would be dedicated in his honor.  His inspirational words engaged the entire congregation in the efforts to reclaim the synagogue from the flood waters as a physical act of Teshuva, the returning of Beth Yeshurun on Beechnut Street to the congregation.  (To view the devastation and to help, see the website:  www.bethyeshurun.org ).  We returned to our duties knowing we had witnessed an historical event.

Tapestry Projection Congregation Beth Yeshurun

As of mid-October, the Red Cross had provided over $200 million in direct cash assistance to a half million households in Texas alone. Millions of meals, snacks and relief items were delivered and over 100,000 health and mental health services were provided. Six weeks from landfall, only two Red Cross shelters remained open, serving 700 residents. Over 1000 Red Cross disaster volunteers remained in Texas at that time.  Additional efforts for Harvey extended into Louisiana.

Clean up supplies in a Houston warehouse to be distributed to
help families recovering after Hurricane Harvey

Overall, 16,000 Red Cross volunteers opened shelters ineight states, Puerto Rico and the U. S. Virgin Islands in response to Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria and Nate.  They were joined by over 6,000 spontaneous volunteers.  Your voluntary donations supported these efforts.  The average cost of deploying a volunteer is $1650, and my friends and family raised nearly that amount. 

To respond to local disasters, the Federation helped to establish the Buffalo Jewish Service Corps (BJSC).  Over 70 members of the Buffalo Jewish community have received training in preparedness, psychological first aid and sheltering in preparation of a local response.  The last training also included members of the local Muslim community.  If you are interested in being a part of BJSC,  please contact Steven Schwartz (stevens@localnet.com), or  for more information about or becoming a Red Cross volunteer, visit www.redcross.org/volunteer. 

4th WCNY Volunteer Deploying to Washington for Wildfire Relief

American Red Cross volunteer Dominic DiGirolamo of Belmont will be deploying Saturday to Washington State to provide Disaster Mental Health services as part of the ongoing wildfire relief efforts. DiGirolamo becomes the fourth Western and Central New York Regional volunteer to deploy to assist in the wildfire response, joining John Craft of Penfield, Diana McLaughlin of Rochester and Donald Nelson, Jr. of Endwell.

The fires burning in the state of Washington are the largest in history, consuming about 600,000 acres so far. Red Cross workers have opened 12 shelters since the fires started, providing more than 750 overnight stays for evacuees. Many more people are visiting the shelters during the day for meals, to get information, or to charge mobile devices.

More than 100 Red Cross workers have provided more than 12,000 meals and snacks, including meals for U.S. military helping fight the fires. The Red Cross distributed hundreds of relief supplies and helped almost 400 people with health services such as replacing prescriptions and lost eyeglasses. Caseworkers are meeting with residents to provide assistance and access to other help.

The American Red Cross is also responding as Tropical Storm Erika heads for the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, reaching Florida by Monday with 50 mph winds and several inches of rain.

On the U.S. Virgin Islands, 56 people spent Wednesday night in several Red Cross supported shelters as Erika neared the region. Red Cross workers in Puerto Rico are ready to respond, with relief supplies set to be distributed where needed. Weather experts expect little change in the storm’s strength as it nears Florida. Parts of the state could see heavy rain, strong winds and high waves along the Atlantic Ocean. Strong winds extend out as much as 105 miles from the center of the storm. The Red Cross across Florida is getting ready to respond as needed, with workers standing by, shelter sites identified and relief supplies ready to distribute.

In the Pacific, Hurricane Ignacio could come close to Hawaii as early as Monday. The storm is already carrying winds as strong as 85 mph and is forecast to get stronger over the next few days. The Red Cross already has supplies on Hawaii because of earlier storms and is watching the situation closely, ready to respond as needed.

HOW YOU CAN HELP People can help by donating to Red Cross Disaster Relief by visiting redcross.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Donations to Disaster Relief will be used to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small. We respond to nearly 70,000 other disasters every year, from home fires to hurricanes and more. Learn more about how Disaster Relief donations have helped people affected by previous disasters including home fires.

From seventies to snow...and Sandy!

It may be difficult to believe, with the bright sunshine and temperatures in the mid 70's, but big changes are coming soon, with some "S" words even popping up in the forecast for next week.

The "S" word that we're most often concerned about here in WNY is, of course, snow. And sure enough, there's a chance the white stuff will start flying next week. Coincidentally, this is Winter Weather Awareness Week in New York State. While you're getting out and enjoying this unexpected blast of summer weather, take some steps now to make sure your ready to stay safe when the winter weather blows in. Maybe take a walk to the store to update your emergency kit with fresh water and food and new batteries for the flashlight. Just remember, the time to prepare is now, because once a blizzard hits it may be too late.

There's another "S" word dominating the weather headlines: Sandy, as in Hurricane Sandy, which is already hitting Cuba, Jamaica and the Bahamas. The storm is expected to push up the east coast this weekend, and when combined with the winter storm could have devastating affects along the east coast starting early next week. In addition to the usual concerns of flooding and wind damage that come with a hurricane, Sandy's predictions even have parallels to our own October Surprise of 2006, with the combination of snow and leafy trees causing long-term power outages.

Outside the Clement Mansion following the
October surprise of 2006. Hopefully, Sandy won't
bring a repeat performance to the East Coast.

Here at the Red Cross, we're getting ready for Sandy, with conference calls scheduled this afternoon to make sure we're ready to respond whenever and wherever it becomes necessary. We encourage everyone to do prepare their families as well. One of the best things you can do is download our hurricane app on your smartphone, with tools to help you prepare for a storm by putting together and emergency kit, find a Red Cross shelter and let your loved ones know your safe.

So enjoy this wonderful day, but don't forget, the weather won't stay this way forever!

Help support!

As it is National Preparedness Month, the Walden Galleria Mall is teaming up with the American Red Cross to promote Disaster Preparedness! This Saturday from 11am-2pm, you’ll be able to talk with American Red Cross representatives who will be on the lower level of the Galleria Mall (just outside of Sephora) handing out preparedness information, including a sample disaster kit and kid friendly preparedness materials and coloring books.  The preparedness information is to help educate the community on the importance of being prepared, especially after our close encounter with Hurricane Irene.  Although she didn’t cause a lot of damage here in the Western New York community, others weren’t as lucky.  Now is the time to get prepared in case there is another hurricane or other disaster, and the information that we’ll be handing out at the mall will do just that.

Speaking of Irene, we are continuing to help those impacted by Hurricane Irene.  To date, the Red Cross has served more than 1.6 million meals and snacks and provided approximately 58,000 overnight shelter stays since the storm made landfall on August 27th.  Over two dozen Red Cross staff and volunteers from the Western New York region remain on deployment to assist with the Hurricane Irene relief efforts in New York State and New England.  The Red Cross relief efforts are currently estimated to cost between $10-$15 million.

To help with this relief effort, there will be a collection canister for the Disaster Relief Fund located at the customer service desk, and a second canister will be available with Red Cross representatives near Sephora. 

 “We are extremely thankful the support of the Walden Galleria,” said Jerilyn Hickey, Director of Major Gifts.  “It is only because of the generosity of the American public that the Red Cross can be there to help our neighbors in need here at home, across the country, and around the world.  And promoting the importance of being prepared, the Galleria is helping to make sure Western New Yorkers are ready should a disaster hit here.”

To learn more about our disaster relief efforts, please click here.

To make a contribution to our relief efforts online, or to learn about other methods of giving, please click here.  

The Hurricane!

Photo courtesy of howstuffworks.com

Did you know: The term hurricane is derived from Huracan, a god of evil recognized by an ancient tribe from Central America.

Hurricanes form over tropical waters in areas of high humidity, light winds, warm seas surface temperatures (typically 80 degrees Fahrenheit or more), and here in the United States they normally effect the South and East coasts.   

They generally bring heavy rain, dense clouds, strong winds, and heavy thunderstorms that can range from 50-300 miles long!

There are two types of warnings that will be put out before a Hurricane, and those are a Hurricane Watch and a Hurricane Warning.  

A Hurricane Watch means that hurricane conditions are a threat within the next 48 hours.  You should review your hurricane plan (if you don't have one, click here!), keep informed, and be ready to act if a warning is issued.

A Hurricane Warning means that hurricane conditions are expected within the next 36 hours.  You should complete your storm preparations and leave the area if directed to do so by authorities.   

• These preparations include:
• Closing windows, doors, and boarding up the windows and doors with plywood
• Turning off all propane tanks and small appliances
• Filling your car's gas tank
• Turning your fridge and freezers to the coldest settings and keeping them as sealed as possible
• If the power goes out your food will last longer
• Bring in all outdoor items that could blow away
• Make sure your emergency kit is up to date with not expired items inside (click here if you need more information on building an emergency kit)
• For more information about how to prepare for a hurricane, click here

Here in the United States, we've had several hurricanes hit, including Ike, Wilma, Rita, and of course, Katrina which was one of the most devastating hurricanes to hit since 1928. For more information about these storms or to learn about other hurricanes that have impacted the United States, click here.    

To learn more about how many hurricanes generally make landfall in the United States a year as well as to see the anatomy of a hurricane, click here for more information from the Red Cross!

To get more information about hurricane hazards, forecast, how to prepare, and act, click here to get more information from the National Hurricane Center.

Are you prepared to travel?



Photo courtesy of newsone.com and AP.

As the weather warms up, we often pack our bags and begin to travel away from our safe haven here in WNY.  No longer are snowstorms, flooding, and the occasional house fire the only things you need to worry about... You may now be in crosshairs of an earthquake, tornado, or even a hurricane!
This is why we urge everyone to learn all they can about what you do during those types of disasters so that regardless of where you are in the world, you’ll be prepared!! So today, we’ve decided to talk about hurricanes!

What is a hurricane?

A hurricane is a strong storm that can cause life­and property­threatening hazards such as flooding, storm surge, high winds and tornadoes.

What are the different type of hurricane warnings?

A hurricane watch is when conditions are a threat within 48 hours. Review your hurricane plans, keep informed and be ready to act if a warning is issued.

A hurricane warning is when conditions are expected within 36 hours. Complete your storm preparations and leave the area if directed to do so by authorities.

Don’t have your emergency kit yet?

Emergency preparedness kits should be made so that you can respond to any sort of emergency, whether it is a fire, flood, tornado or earthquake, you should be able to grab your kit and survive on your own for a minimum of 3 days. 



Haven’t made your kit yet? Want to learn more about hurricanes? Click here to learn more.