AMERICAN RED CROSS PERMAIN BASIN AREA CHAPTER: Never-ending 2020 Disasters: Red Cross Helping Colorado Wildfire Victims

American Red Cross Permian Basin Area Chapter issued the following announcement.

As the never-ending string of 2020 disasters continues, the American Red Cross is on the ground in Colorado where wildfires have forced people from their homes, burning thousands of acres and destroying homes.

One of the blazes — the Cameron Peak Fire — is the largest fire in the state’s history. More than 140 Red Cross disaster workers are helping those affected, either on the ground or virtually. Wednesday night almost 1,300 people were in emergency lodgings. The Red Cross has also provided more than 27,100 meals and snacks and more than 1,900 individual care contacts to help people with medical or disability needs.

The Colorado fires are part of what has been a record wildfire season in the west with millions of acres destroyed and thousands of people displaced. As if these monster fires weren’t enough, the Gulf Coast is working hard to recover from the major hurricanes which devastated communities across the region. Red Cross disaster workers remain on the ground in both regions, working 24-7 to help thousands of people in need.

Over the past several weeks, the Red Cross has:

• Provided more than 1 million overnight stays in emergency lodgings across multiple states all over the country      
• With partners, served more than 2.7 million meals and snacks    
• Distributed 327,200 relief items with the help of partners              
• Provided 105,300 individual care contacts to help people with medical or disability needs or provide emotional and spiritual support during these challenging times
• Provided 10,600 households with emergency financial assistance to help them replace essential items and begin to recover

   

More relief supplies — including ready-to-eat meals, cots, blankets, cleanup kits, hygiene items and personal protective equipment such as masks and hand sanitizer — stand ready if we need them.

We are also helping people impacted by smaller disasters like home fires every day.

HURRICANE RESPONSE Hundreds of Red Cross disaster workers are still responding along the Gulf Coast as people struggle to recover from Hurricanes Laura, Sally and Delta. More than 4,400 people are still in emergency lodgings and a total of more than 759,400 overnight stays have been provided. The Red Cross and partners have served more than 1.9 million meals and snacks and distributed more than 282,300 relief items, along with making more than 53,400 individual care contacts to help people with medical or disability needs or provide emotional and spiritual support during these challenging times. The Red Cross has also provided 8,570 households with emergency financial assistance to help them replace essential items and begin to recover.

WILDFIRE RESPONSE Meanwhile, more than 4,000 people out west remain in emergency lodging, forced from their homes by the record-setting wildfires which have destroyed thousands of homes and other buildings. The Red Cross and partners have provided more than 330,700 total overnight stays in emergency lodgings, served more than 874,800 meals and snacks, distributed 44,900 relief items and

provided 51,900 individual care contacts. The Red Cross has also provided 2,040 households with emergency financial assistance to help them replace essential items and begin to recover.

COVID-19 has not changed the Red Cross mission, and we are still providing the same types of support as we have previously. To help keep people safe, we are following guidance from CDC and public health authorities — and have put in place additional precautions. Some of these steps include social distancing protocols, face coverings, health screenings and enhanced cleaning methods.

This ongoing coronavirus pandemic has only compounded the devastation wrought by these disasters. The country is seeing an average of more than 59,000 new cases every day and almost every state reports an increase in COVID-19 cases. Responding to disasters is a team effort and no single organization can do it alone. This is particularly true in this current coronavirus environment.

YOU CAN HELP by making a donation, giving blood, or by becoming a Red Cross volunteer.

Please donate to help now by visiting redcross.org, calling 800-RED-CROSS or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small.

• Want to help people specifically affected by the different wildfires? Write “California Wildfires” or “Oregon Wildfires” in the memo line of a check and mail it to your local Red Cross chapter with the completed donation form. For California Wildfires you can also text the word CAWILDFIRES to 90999 to make a $10 donation.
• To help people impacted by the recent storms, visit redcross.org, call 800-RED-CROSS or text the word HURRICANES to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

   

With the current disasters and the complexities of COVID-19, more help is needed now. Become a Red Cross volunteer today. Review our most urgently needed volunteer positions at redcross.org/volunteertoday.

This fall, wildfires and hurricanes have added new hurdles in collecting lifesaving blood donations and compounded ongoing challenges to maintaining a sufficient blood supply during COVID-19. Unfortunately, these disasters are not over. Every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood. And those needs do not diminish during disasters or pandemics. To help restock hospital shelves, the Red Cross urges eligible individuals in parts of the country unaffected by these disasters to give blood, platelets or plasma for patients in need of transfusions. Please schedule an appointment to donate by using the Red Cross Blood Donor app, visiting RedCrossBlood.org or calling 800-RED-CROSS.

Original source can be found here.