American Red Cross Disaster Newsroom

YAPHANK, N.Y., Sept. 3, 2010 – Governor David A. Paterson thanked American Red Cross volunteers Friday afternoon for their efforts to prepare Long Island for Hurricane Earl’s approach. At a press conference in the agency’s operations center, Paterson praised them,

“Not just for their response to this disaster but for all the months of work and training and preparedness that make it easy.”

The response on Long Island is being led by Robert Imbornoni, the chief response officer for the Metropolitan New York Chapters. Imbornoni credited the success of the effort to years of hard work and coordination between the local chapters. The disaster relief operation headquarters was established adjacent to the Suffolk County Chapter’s offices. Volunteers from throughout the region—Suffolk, Nassau County, and Greater New York—are leading the response with some volunteers coming from as far as Chicago.

And though most of Long Island seems to have dodged a bullet thanks to Earl shifting east, the Red Cross remains on the job. A shelter is open in Montauk, a small village located on the easternmost point of the island that is being pounded by heavy surf and rain. Coastal flooding remains a concern across the island as the storm passes.

“We will be here as long as we are needed,” stated Imbornoni.