Below are three videos. First, a walk through our warehouse of supplies in Haiti. Second, one of our volunteers explains how he’s going to distribute the supplies. Third, a look at how supplies are actually distributed to survivors.

Disaster Alert

Winter Storm
Thousands of residents throughout several states and the District of Columbia continue to be affected by power outages as a result of the winter storm that occurred over the weekend. In addition, a major Nor’easter storm is forecast for today. Several Winter Storm Warnings and Advisories are in effect.

North Carolina; West Virginia; Virginia; Maryland; Washington DC; Pennsylvania; Delaware; New Jersey
Chapters within the affected areas kept dozens of shelters open and provided Mass Care for local residents, as well as stranded travelers, and continued to collaborate with government agencies and community organizations to provide support as needed.

Please click through for caption and courtesy information. You may use these photos but please provide proper attribution.

All American Red Cross photos from Haiti.

We now have a dedicated site to document our relief efforts in Haiti.

http://www.redcross.org/haiti

Haiti_Funds_PieChart

Tracy Reines, Director of International Disaster Response, shows you a few examples of the items we’re distributing to survivors in Haiti.

John Mayer’s Heart of Life is featured in this new public service announcement for Haiti.

American Red Cross and Other U.S. Blood Centers Send Blood to Haiti

WASHINGTON, Wednesday, February 03, 2010 — As medical teams in Haiti continue to evaluate and treat the victims of the devastating earthquake, the American Red Cross is coordinating shipments of blood and blood products to Haiti at the request of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

Today, the American Red Cross is coordinating the shipment of 350 units of blood to Haiti – 175 units of blood from the Red Cross and the other 175 units from America’s Blood Centers (ABC), Blood Centers of America (BCA) and the AABB’s National Blood Exchange (NBE).

With today’s shipment, about 1,100 units of blood have been sent to Haiti to help treat earthquake victims — nearly 750 units from the Red Cross and 350 units by ABC, BCA and the NBE.

PAHO officials are working with the National Blood Transfusion Program at the Ministry of Health in Haiti to distribute blood to local hospitals according to the needs of the earthquake victims.

Future shipments will be coordinated with PAHO by the American Red Cross and will be filled through a cooperative effort with other blood collectors in the United States. The Armed Services Blood Program continues to coordinate the supply of blood products for US military medical facilities participating in the relief efforts, such as the USNS Comfort.

Read more at redcross.org >>

The American Red Cross has spent or committed nearly $78 million to meet the most urgent needs of earthquake survivors.

• To meet urgent needs, 71 percent of the funds spent or committed by the American Red Cross have been for food and water; 20 percent have been for shelter; and the rest are for health and family services.
• Because of the generosity of donors, people in Haiti will receive more than immediate relief — they will receive resources, support and training from the Red Cross that will help them recover and rebuild in the years ahead.

The humanitarian aid pipeline is opening wider and logistical problems are getting smaller, but the needs in Haiti are still immense. Red Cross teams are on the ground assessing ways to not only meet the immediate needs but also provide long-term recovery assistance, such as restarting the local market economy and addressing housing needs.

• 4 Red Cross warehouses (2 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and 2 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti) are open and operating at full capacity.
• The Red Cross is now producing 1 million liters of water per day, enough for 185,000 people to receive 5.4 liters per person per day. In addition, Red Cross teams are working to scale up latrine construction.
• To date, Red Cross distributions of food and relief items have reached nearly 20,000 families (or 100,000 people).
• To date, more than 64 flights carrying Red Cross aid from around the world have arrived in Santo Domingo and Haiti.
• The American Red Cross is in Haiti as a part of the broader and coordinated Red Cross and Red Crescent network. Read some more about how the American Red Cross responds to international disasters.

Disaster Alert

Update 2/4/10: Currently an estimated 46,470 customers remain without power; full restoration is expected February 5, 2010. The storm is blamed for 7 deaths.

Oklahoma – Power outages continued to affect local residents due to last weekend’s winter storms. Currently it is reported that over 70, 000 customers are without power.

The Chapters kept 11 shelters open, provided feeding, supported other organizations providing Mass Care (MC), and staffed or contacted Emergency Operation Centers (EOC’s).

Disaster Alert

Texas – On February 1, 2010, the Texas State Operations Center reported power outages for about 3, 000 customers in the Wichita, Wilbarger, Hardeman, Tillman and Caddo counties. 1, 250 poles were reported being down with miles of lines on the ground. Over 140 linemen continue working to restore lines, but are unable to provide a period for full restoration of power.

The ARC of North Central Texas chapter opened one shelter, placed another on stand-by and fed 17 people. The Sheppard Air Force Base provided a generator for use at the open shelter.

Reports from the ground on distribution of relief supplies, etc. at locations in Port-au-Prince.

Red Cross relief supplies continue to arrive, and more food, water and relief supplies are reaching survivors in the capital city and outlying areas, although the needs remain great.

• The American Red Cross and its partners are now producing almost 1 million litres of water per day, enough for 185,000 people to receive 5.4 litres per person per day.
• To date, the global Red Cross network has distributed nearly 4.2 million litres of water in 115 sites. In addition, Red Cross teams are working to scale up latrine construction as quickly as possible.
• Approximately 600 patients are being seen per day.
• As of January 29, more than 56 flights carrying Red Cross aid from around the world have arrived in Haiti.
• Shelter remains an urgent need. While the Red Cross works to provide a range of assistance, we are assessing needs and developing a strategy to meet long-term housing reconstruction needs.

Disaster Alert

Strong winter storms that brought ice and snow to several states including Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Oklahoma.
since Friday caused power outages to thousands of local residents, closed roadways and stranded travelers. Several State of Emergency declarations were made.

Oklahoma – Winter storms continued to cause power outages to local residents and road closures that stranded travelers throughout the state since Friday. The President declared a State of Emergency for Oklahoma. Chapters deployed Disaster Action Teams (DAT), opened 12 shelters, provided Mass Care or partnered with other organizations to provide Mass Care (MC) for hundreds of residents as well as stranded travelers and staffed or contacted Emergency Operations Centers to assist as needed. As of midnight, February 1st, there were 456 shelter occupants.

Significant precipitation continues in parts of the South Area with 5-10 inches of snow possible in some areas, while sleet and freezing rain are expected in others.

In the Central Area, 6-10 inches of snow is possible in some parts, while below zero temperatures are forecast in other portions.

Snow and snow showers are forecast for the Northeast Area with single-digit temperatures likely in some areas.

Rain and mountain snow is expected in portions of the West Area.

Please review our Winter Safety Guidelines to prepare yourself if you may be affected.