NAACP disaster liaison Steve Branch meets with Red Cross volunteer John Manners of Tennessee at the American Red Cross Alabama tornado Disaster Operations Center to map out a plan to help people in tornado ravaged areas outside Birmingham, AL.

It’s 10 a.m. on Thursday, January 26th , just days after tornadoes tore through neighborhoods and communities surrounding Birmingham, Alabama and there’s nothing else Steve Branch wants to be doing than helping the American Red Cross help those in need. Branch, unfortunately, has seen his share of disasters, most recently as the head of the NAACP’s disaster response following the Tuscaloosa tornado less than a year earlier. Branch is helping again this year as part of a partnership the NAACP has with the American Red Cross, a partnership Branch values a great deal.

“The NAACP and the Red Cross serve as a bridge,” Branch says. “They are a bridge to bring people together to help each other.”

Branch says within 24 hours dozens of NAACP members from around Alabama will descend on Birmingham. Then in conjunction with the Red Cross, they will handle administrative and field work, including fanning out to the hardest hit areas to meet face to face with residents. Branch says the volunteers will be organized by expertise and then assigned to help where the needs are greatest.

“First and foremost, we are here to help,” Branch says. “But we also want to enlighten and educate residents about the kind of assistance the Red Cross provides and how to get it.”

The partnership the American Red Cross has with the NAACP is just one of many partnerships the Red Cross worked out long ago and is being put to good use here in Alabama.

The American Red Cross’ longstanding partnership with the Southern Baptist Convention is once again helping serve hundreds of meals to people who don’t have power or the means to cook their own meals.

The American Red Cross buys the food, the Southern Baptists then cook it up in a makeshift kitchen outside one of three shelters set up here, and then Red Cross volunteers load up the food in Emergency Response Vehicles and literally hand delivers it to people at their homes or in their neighborhoods.

Just like the American Red Cross cannot do what it does without the generous support of donations from the public, it also cannot do what it does without the many partnerships it has formed over the years. The American Red Cross is continually forming new relationships, like the one it has with Steve Branch and the NAACP, so it can continue to respond to disasters quickly, effectively, and efficiently.

A driving downpour is not enough to stop the Red Cross from making its regular round of food deliveries to a tornado stricken neighborhood outside Birmingham, AL where power is out and cooking meals is impossible.

Alabama - The American Red Cross will provide additional services for people with significant damage from the recent tornadoes, starting Friday at Clearview Baptist Church, 5271 Old Springville Road, Pinson. During the hours of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. they can meet one-on-one with caseworkers, health and mental health professionals. The Red Cross workers will offer local resources and referrals, help with prescriptions and other emergency medical needs, and assist those who need help registering for other relief programs. Anyone who cannot come during those hours is urged to call the Red Cross at (205) 439-7800 and push Option 6 to set up an appointment. They can also leave a message for a call-back.

Ongoing Red Cross disaster relief services include bulk distribution of supplies such as tarps, rakes, shovels, trash bags, gloves, comfort kits of toiletry items and clean-up kits. A distribution site for these items is also located at Clearview Baptist Church, where people should look for the Red Cross truck.

Two Red Cross shelters remain open:

· First Baptist Church of Center Point – 1945 Center Point Parkway, Center Point

· Clay Community Center – 6415 Clay-Palmerdale Road, Clay

Emergency Response Vehicles also are continuing to bring meals to the affected areas.

The following information shows our total service delivery since the beginning of the response to tornadoes in Alabama on 1/23/12:

• Shelters opened: 3
• Shelter Overnight Stays: 35
• Bulk items (water, comfort kits, shovels, rakes, clean-up kits, trash bags, hand sanitizer, gloves, and stuffed animals for children): 685 
• Meals served: 1,373
• Snacks served: 4,412
• Emergency Response Vehicles on the ground: 7
• Health Services Consultations: 7
• Red Cross Workers: 104

See entire “Alabama Tornadoes (Jan 2012)” set on Flickr >>

Texas – Rain and possible tornadoes caused varying degrees of damage to homes in Brazoria, Lavaca, Bexar, Bastrop, Burleson, Caldwell, Grimes, Lee and Travis counties yesterday. Thousands of residents lost power.

Disaster Action Team members of the affected chapters are working with clients to meet their needs.

Chapters will be doing damage assessment and are in contact with local Emergency Management.

• Greater Houston Area Chapter
• Crossroads Chapter
• San Antonio Area Chapter
• Heart of Texas Area Chapter
• ARC of Central Texas Chapter
• Smith County Chapter

Alabama – The following two American Red Cross shelters remain open for those affected by the tornadoes who need a place to stay:

First Baptist Church of Center Point – 1945 Center Point Parkway, Center Point, AL
Clay Community Center – 6415 Clay-Palmerdale Road, Clay, AL

The Red Cross shelter at Springville First Methodist Church will close as of 4:00 p.m. today. The shelter residents there will be going to the shelter at First Baptist Church of Center Point.

See entire “Alabama Tornadoes (Jan 2012)” set on Flickr >>

See entire “Alabama Tornadoes (Jan 2012)” set on Flickr >>

Alabama – Volunteers with the American Red Cross are taking Emergency Response Vehicles to the affected areas to distribute meals, water and clean up kits to families in need.

Volunteers are also continuing to assess the damage to homes throughout the state. So far they have found that more than 500 homes throughout Alabama were affected by the severe weather. Some areas are still inaccessible due to downed power lines and trees in the road. Here are the latest damage assessment numbers for the affected areas:

Homes Destroyed: 235
Homes with Major Damage: 233
Homes with Minor Damage: 44

Affected families should call (205) 439-7800 or their local Red Cross office for more information about Red Cross assistance. In the coming days trained Red Cross disaster workers will be meeting with the families affected and will assist them with their immediate emergency needs based on the extent of the damage to their homes.

Last night 15 people stayed in Red Cross shelters. Red Cross shelters are open at the following locations:

• First Baptist Church of Center Point – 1945 Center Point Parkway, Center Point, AL 35215
• Clay Community Center – 6415 Clay-Palmerdale Road, Clay, AL
• Springville First Methodist Church – 6471 U.S. Highway 11, Springville, AL 35146

Alabama – Several tornadoes destroyed or damaged hundreds of homes and left thousands of residents in Tuscaloosa, St. Clair, Jefferson and Calhoun Counties without power on Monday. Multiple fatalities and scores of injuries reported

The West Alabama Chapter deployed Disaster Action Team members, opened three shelters and provided assistance as needed to affected-area residents.

Disaster Action Team members from the Jefferson-Shelby Chapter provided bulk distribution and met with families to assist them with their immediate, emergency needs.