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Red Cross Shelters Hundreds as Flood Waters Threaten Nationally and Locally
Apr 6, 2009
Tuesday, March 31, 2009 — The American Red Cross is continuing to focus its operations in North Dakota and Minnesota on sheltering families displaced by the Red River’s record rise and offering around-the-clock feeding to volunteers who are still filling sandbags. The Red Cross has opened six shelters and has provided over 630 overnight stays to date. Nearly 700 Red Cross disaster volunteers have worked in the area, helping share more than 38 thousand meals and nearly 110 thousand snacks to evacuated families and emergency workers. Thirty-four Emergency Response Vehicles (ERVs) are providing mobile feeding and more are on the way. More than 50,000 ready-to-eat meals are already on site, and mobile kitchens are deploying with a capacity of serving 15,000 meals a day.
Even as the Red Cross is assisting the residents of North Dakota and Minnesota, severe spring weather is also hammering parts of Mississippi. Nine counties in Mississippi were hit with heavy rain, tornadoes and flooding last week. On Sunday, the Mississippi Gulf Coast Chapter opened a shelter at the Donald Snyder Community Center and distributed hundreds of clean up kits to Harrison County residents affected by flooding. The Red Cross will remain on alert as more severe weather is expected in coming days. Clean Up kits are available at the chapter.
Help people affected by disasters like the recent flooding and storms by donating to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. On those rare occasions when donations exceed Red Cross expenses for a specific disaster, contributions are used to prepare for and serve victims of other disasters. Your gift enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to victims of all disasters. Call 228-896-4511. Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to the local American Red Cross Chapter: P.O. Box 4514, Biloxi MS 39531. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting
www.redcross-msgc.org.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and counsels victims of disasters; provides nearly half of the nation's blood supply; teaches lifesaving skills; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its humanitarian mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at .www.redcrosschat.org
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