Red Cross Responding to Fire in Town of Lockport

Red Cross Responding to Fire in Town of Lockport

Disaster Action Team assisting residents of trailer park

BUFFALO, NY, November 29, 2012 – The American Red Cross, Serving Erie & Niagara Counties is currently assisting residents following a trailer park fire this morning. Volunteers from our Disaster Action Team met with the two adults and four children on the scene earlier today to assess their immediate emergency needs.

Red Cross assistance typically includes vouchers for temporary housing, food, clothing, and emotional support for those displaced by the fire. The family is expected to meet with caseworkers in the coming days to work out a longer-term recovery plan.

The Disaster Action Team is a group of specially trained volunteers who respond to the scene of a local disaster when called upon 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. For more information on how to Join Us as a Disaster Action Team member, please call (716) 878-2140 or visit www.redcross.org/buffaloniagara.

The American Red Cross, Serving Erie & Niagara Counties spends an average of just over $1,000 when responding to a single house fire affecting a family of four.  To make a financial donation to help this family and others affected by house fires and other disasters down the street, across the country, or around the world, please visit www.redcross.org, call 1-800-REDCROSS, or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation (charges will appear on your cell phone bill).  



More Stories From the Field

There's so many amazing stories happening as part of the Red Cross response to Sandy, and I'm honored and humbled to have been a small part of it. So today, I want to link to a few stories put together by the members of the Public Affairs team that I was honored to be a part of.

I'll start with a photo record of my two weeks in NYC: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151334759114434.526892.69290729433&type=1&l=6ce96ee71c.

Bob Wallace, one of my Public Affairs teammates, caught up with Niagara Falls own Mike Hoplight, and like us, Bob was amazed at everything Mike does for the Red Cross: http://newsroom.redcross.org/2012/11/24/story-mike-hoplight/.

I met this gentleman-who's also a judge-a week and a half ago, working on his day off to help those in Brooklyn's Red Hook neighborhood (special thanks to my good friend Alyson Roach for putting the final story together): http://newsroom.redcross.org/2012/11/24/story-5/#more-10395.

This one isn't a link, but Julie Krizen's story of a man we met at a union meeting to inform members of services available to them:

The remains of Michael O'Hanlon's Breezy Point home.
Michael says his wife loves the meals the Red Cross provides.

Michael O'Hanlon was displaced after Superstorm Sandy made landfall and caused a massive fire in his neighborhood. He and his wife had to swim out of his burning home and are now living with relatives. Both have been very thankful for the support they have received from the American Red Cross - especially hot meals at a time when they were needed most. Almost 3 weeks later Michael remains positive and upbeat despite the tears in his eyes. He carries around pictures of what is left of his home but says "I can look at them, but I just can't stare at them. I know I need to sit down and have a big cry, but I just don't have the time for that right now." Michael is just thankful to be able to celebrate Thanksgiving with his family and knows although the road to recovery is a long one, he will be just fine.

Together with the amazing Katie Wilkes-who gave up a vacation in Australia to volunteer with the Red Cross-we met Miss Cynthia, who's passion and dedication is off the charts: http://newsroom.redcross.org/2012/11/27/story-red-cross-delivers-hope/#more-10409.

Of course, the Red Cross can't be there for our neighbors in need without the support of the American public. These high schoolers from Ohio made some beautiful music to help those affected by Sandy; https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152250511190618&set=a.372557220617.346307.299568830617&type=1&theater

And just in case you're still not impressed by the sacrifices of Red Cross volunteers, check out this Wall Street Journal story on how a hundred or so of them have been living while helping those most affected by Sandy: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323830404578145121283796906.html?mod=WSJ_NY_RealEstate_LEFTTopStories.

Seeing the devastation--and the relief--first hand

We've all seen the pictures over the past three weeks. Homes destroyed and people's lives turned upside down by Hurricane Sandy. Having now seen it first hand, I can tell you the pictures don't do it justice.

Our first stop on Sunday was to a bulk distribution site on Coney Island, where folks from this relatively poor area of Brooklyn lined up to get much needed food and water, blankets and flashlights, mops and buckets, and more things essential as they start rebuilding their lives. I was a little surprised at how widespread the need appeared to be three weeks after the storm hit--until I took a walk around.

Nope, that's not snow they're shoveling. That's sand that had washed up on the shore and completely covered this Coney Island gazebo hundreds of feet away from the normal shoreline. These local residents were clearing literally inches of sand off the gazebo. Nearby, there were mounds of sand that had already been cleared from the boardwalks and streets, much like we'd see after a good old-fashioned Buffalo blizzard. When you consider what that sand--and the water that brought it up--could do to homes and power lines, the need comes a little more in focus.

Then we moved on to a nearby community called Sea Gate, and were greeted with visions like this:

A picture speaks a thousand words, but so do the people who lived through this. A Sea Gate resident who was getting a bite to eat from one of our Emergency Response Vehicles told me that he just got his heat back the day before, and the lights are coming on "in phases". "Before the storm, I parked my car eight blocks away, just in case," he said. "The water was up to the roof. I watched the storm with a buddy from an eighth floor apartment. He asked me, 'Is this the end of the world?' I replied, 'I don't know.'"

Considering the unthinkable devastation that they are dealing with, the perseverance these people continue to show is inspiring. One woman told me, "Two days after the storm, a Red Cross truck pulled up to the corner. I had my first Red Cross meal. It was good!"

The Red Cross will continue to help those affected by Sandy for weeks and months to come as families get back on their feet. This is likely to be the biggest Red Cross response in the U.S. in the past five years. To help, call 1-800-REDCROSS, click www.redcross.org, or text in a donation today. Our neighbors in New York City thank you.

A Taste of Home

When I worked in the media, we always joked that no matter what the story, there was ALWAYS a Western New York connection. So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that this was the first thing I saw when heading out to a bulk distribution site on Brooklyn's Brighton Beach:

Yep, that's our Emergency Response Vehicle from Niagara Falls getting ready to serve a hot meal to  residents still devastated almost three weeks after the storm, one of over 300 Red Cross vehicles working on the Sandy response. The volunteers inside weren't WNYers, at least not this time, but it's yet another example of The City (or should that be region?) of Good Neighbors coming through for those in need.

Brighton Beach is one of 15 fixed sites across New York City where the Red Cross is serving meals and water and distributing comfort and clean up kits with things like blankets, flashlights, mops and buckets this weekend. As of Friday, over 2.1 million relief items had been distributed and over 6.1 million meals and snacks have been served, and those numbers are going to continue to jump. In addition to Brighton Beach, I also visited a site at Red Hook, and was struck by the size of the line.

It's pretty clear that this response is going to last a long time. If you want to help, please visit www.redcross.org, call 1-800-REDCROSS or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to charge a $10 donation to your phone bill. The people here still need your help.