American Red Cross Disaster Newsroom

The following information shows our total service delivery since the beginning of the Hurricane Irene response in New York:

• Shelters opened: 99
• Shelter Overnight Stays: 6,092
• Bulk items and clean up kits: 31,182
• Meals served: 91,433
• Snacks served: 266,296
• Emergency Response Vehicles on the ground: 37
• Mental Health Consultations: 4,677
• Health Services Consultations: 3,739
• Total Red Cross workers: 1,557

Red Cross Working with Residents in the Aftermath of Irene
Residents in Williamstown Working Toward Recovery

As Hurricane Irene swept across New England, the aftermath of flooding devastated many communities. In Williamstown, high in the Berkshires of Massachusetts, a mobile home park was completely flooded and residents had to be evacuated, some by boat.

Rosanne Marsh, age 69 and resident of The Spruces Mobile Home Park, followed the request for voluntary evacuation recognizing that her home was in an area most likely to flood. Many of her friends in the park decided to stay in their homes and faced emergency evacuation when rising water took less than an hour to flood the park. She reflects, “I know I’m lucky to be alive, but this was my home and now my friends are all gone, moved out.”

Red Cross volunteers, on site at the mobile home park to provide food, clean up kits and guidance to residents, met with Rosanne to help her organize next steps in recovering from this disaster. “Red Cross has helped put my mind at ease as far as taking care of us and feeding us, you’ve done so much for us.”

Working with partner agencies in the community, Red Cross continues to reach out to the residents of The Spruces as well as to those across New England who have felt the impact of Hurricane Irene. In its national response to Hurricane Irene, Red Cross has served more than 1.2 million meals and snacks, provided over 56,000 shelter overnight stays and distributed over 56,000 relief supplies.

It’s important that those affected by the storm stay in contact with loved ones and the Red Cross Safe and Well website can help them do that. Safe and Well is a secure, easy-to-use online tool to help families connect in an emergency. People can register by visiting the Red Cross web site or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

The Red Cross is urging immediate blood and platelet donation for those who are able to do so. The blood supply was already low prior to the storm and many blood drives were cancelled resulting in a shortfall. To schedule an appointment, please call 1-800-RED CROSS or visit www.redcrossblood.org.

American Red Cross disaster preparedness starts long before a hurricane makes landfall, beginning with keeping supplies and equipment on stand-by all year to help people in need. On average, the Red Cross spends about $450 million on disaster relief every year. If someone would like to support Red Cross disaster efforts, they can make a donation to American Red Cross Disaster Relief by visiting www.redcross.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS, texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation, or sending contributions to their local Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013.