Daytona Beach, FL, February 10, 2007 - February 9 marked one week since tornados devastated communities in the Central Florida Counties of Lake, Sumter and Volusia.
Since the night of the devastation tornados, the American Red Cross has provided people with food, supplies, shelters, emergency assistance, health services and emotional support.
The Red Cross will continue to provide assistance throughout the weekend. People in the affected areas who still have emergency disaster-caused needs should call 1-866-GET-INFO and arrange to meet with a Red Cross worker.
Robert Scheifele, Administrator for Mass Care, expects it will be “business as usual” over the Feb. 10-11 weekend. He said there is usually a major push over the weekend since people are home then, trying to clean up and repair their lives.
Although, people’s immediate needs for food and supplies may begin to taper off in the coming days, emergency assistance and emotional support will go on as people continue the process of rebuilding. American Red Cross Emergency Response Vehicles (ERVs) are still providing food and snacks. Other ERVs are distributing clean-up kits, with such items as rakes, shovels, gloves, brushes, mops, buckets, sponges, bleach, disinfectant, and sunscreen to help people pick up the pieces and move forward.
In addition, two ERVs per day have served as community aid stations – providing contacts to arrange emotional support or other assistance.
“They are magnets to draw people out,” Scheifele said.
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 thousands of disasters across the country each year, disasters like the tornadoes in Central Florida, 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 victims of disaster. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. If you wish to designate your donation to a specific disaster please do so at the time of your donation. Call 1-800-REDCROSS or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P. O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org.”
