Birmingham Red Cross in the News...

Red Cross Volunteers Deploy for Hurricane Katrina

Birmingham, AL. Disaster volunteers prepare for deployment in response to Hurricane Katrina. On Friday, the Chapter prepared the Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) for volunteers to drive to the Hurricane Staging Area in Tallahassee, Florida. Both volunteers are Mass Care Disaster Volunteers and have committed to a two week assignment which may or may not be in Florida. One volunteer has been volunteering since last October and is retired from U.S. Steel. The other began her Red Cross volunteer work last spring and is retired from the banking industry in Human Resources. Both volunteers were assigned also to Hurricane Dennis last July.

The American Red Cross is where people mobilize to help their neighbors—across the street, across the country, and across the world—in emergencies. Each year, in communities large and small, victims of some 70,000 disasters turn to neighbors familiar and new--the nearly one million volunteers and 35,000 employees of the Red Cross. Through almost 900 locally supported chapters, more than 15 million people gain the skills they need to prepare for and respond to emergencies in their homes, communities and world. Some four million people give blood—the gift of life—through the Red Cross, making it the largest supplier of blood and blood products in the United States. And the Red Cross helps thousands of U.S. service members separated from their families by military duty stay connected. As part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, a global network of 181 national societies, the Red Cross helps restore hope and dignity to the world's most vulnerable people. An average of 91 cents of every dollar the Red Cross spends is invested in humanitarian services and programs. The Red Cross is not a government agency; it relies on donations of time, money, and blood to do its work.

American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund Threatened by Nationwide Storms

After continued rounds of volatile storms, the American Red Cross is urging the public to donate to its Disaster Relief Fund to support the relief efforts for the people affected by the massive flooding in the south and the tornadoes that recently ripped through the American heartland.

"The devastation that's been left behind from more than 200 tornadoes this week alone is shocking," said the executive vice president of Disaster Services for the American Red Cross. "The American Red Cross urgently needs funds to ensure that we can meet the immediate needs of people affected by these tornadoes and floods. We've spent more to assist people during disasters this year than what has been received in funding, and we're relying on the public to help us help others in this critical time."

Nearly 1,000 Red Cross relief workers are on the scene in Missouri, Kansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, Illinois, Alabama, and Mississippi providing for the immediate needs of the tornado and flood victims. More than two dozen Red Cross shelters have opened throughout the affected states to give displaced families a place where they can sleep, eat a hot meal, and receive vital information about available assistance. Because of the widespread devastation, Red Cross workers will be deployed for many weeks in communities across the nation to continue relief efforts, focusing efforts on victim support and recovery, especially mental health services for those suffering from emotional trauma caused by the deadly storms.

Relief services are stretched and depleting the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. This fund is not a reserve; it is a working fund that needs continued replenishment when disaster strikes. As this tornado season continues and hurricane season approaches, one large storm could deplete the balance of the fund completely.

A financial gift to the Disaster Relief Fund enables the Red Cross to provide food, shelter, mental health counseling and other assistance to those impacted by these tornadoes and severe storms, as well as thousands of other disasters across the country each year.

Based on preliminary data, estimated costs for the tornado and flood relief operations are expected to be as high as $5 million and could climb even higher as severe weather continues to plague America. It is vital to Red Cross relief efforts that the fund is healthy and viable to provide services for these large disasters and the hundreds of smaller disasters that the Red Cross responds to every year across the country. Since July 2002, the Red Cross has spent more than $85 million responding to 230 large-scale disasters, but raised only $26 million toward these efforts.

You can help the Red Cross assist victims of this and thousands of disasters across the country each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to those in need. You can make a secure donation and save lives!

American Red Cross To Open Shelters in the Birmingham Area

With a flood of evacuees headed north away from Hurricane Ivan, the Birmingham Area Chapter is opening shelters starting at 6pm Tuesday night. The shelters will be able to provide snacks only this evening, so evacuees are asked to get dinner prior to checking in. We realize there is a great likelihood that central Alabama will see damaging winds, lightning, and flooding – but we recommend these shelters be set aside for those coming from the Gulf Coast.Later this week, Red Cross volunteers will be on standby to open additional shelters to meet local needs as they arise. Those who live in manufactured housing or in flood-prone areas are advised to stay tuned to local media outlets for information about storm shelters opening near their neighborhoods.

Additional shelters will be announced tomorrow morning, and as needed. We will do our best to accommodate media requests at our shelters, in accordance with Red Cross policies. Thanks for your help and your patience.

All American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. You can help the victims of these recent hurricanes and thousands of other disasters across the country each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to those in need. Call NOW or - Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross.