American Red Cross Urges Residents to Prepare for Severe Weather

Posted on April 15, 2013 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter

Download free Tornado App to get ready for rain, strong winds and possible tornadoes

The American Red Cross is urging residents in Northeast Wisconsin to make sure households, schools and business are prepared for possible severe weather including rain, strong winds and possible tornados.

“Listen to weather alerts and designate a safe space where people can gather for the duration of the storm,” said Judy Gregory, Regional Manager, Disaster Services.  “The area should be a basement, storm cellar or an interior room on the lowest floor away from windows.”

Do this one simple step in being prepared - download one of the many Red Cross Apps to your phone!

Do this one simple step in being prepared – download one of the many Red Cross Apps to your phone!

Download Tornado App

The American Red Cross Tornado App is available in English or Spanish and gives iPhone, iPad and Android smart phone and tablet users instant access to local and real-time information, so they know what to do before, during and after a tornado.

The free app includes a high-pitched siren and “tornado warning!” alert that signals when a NOAA tornado warning has been issued. This feature allows users to make critical decisions and to take actions to help keep themselves and their loved ones safe even in the middle of the night. An “all clear!” alert lets users know when a tornado warning has expired or has been cancelled.

Other features of the app include:

  • Location-based NOAA tornado, severe thunderstorm and flood watch and warning alerts;
  • One touch “I’m safe” messaging that allows users to broadcast reassurance to family and friends via social media outlets that they are out of harm’s way;
  • Preloaded content that gives users instant access to critical action steps, even without mobile connectivity;
  • Toolkit with flashlight, strobe light and audible alarm; and
  • Locations of open Red Cross shelters.

“If a tornado is threatening your area, listen for alerts and warnings, grab your emergency preparedness kit and head to your designated safe area,” Gregory added. “Be prepared to evacuate if necessary.”

The Tornado App, along with other apps, can be found in the Apply App Store and the Google Play Store for Android by searching for American Red Cross or by going to redcross.org/mobileapps. People can go to redcross.org/tornado for more safety tips.

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Prepare for Spring Storms…… Or Winter Again

Posted on April 9, 2013 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter

Tornado, Flood, and Thunderstorm Season nears.

Be Red Cross Ready - Last year, hurricanes battered the East Coast in less than three months prompting the Red Cross to mount its largest and most expensive response to a natural disaster in the organization’s history.

Thousands of people turned to the media for information on the storms’ paths and where to go for help. With predictions of another busy storm season on the horizon, the American Red Cross invites you to join us for a Preparedness Seminar.

Do this one simple step in being prepared - download one of the many Red Cross Apps to your phone!

Do this one simple step in being prepared – download one of the many Red Cross Apps to your phone!

Who:  Free to the public

What: Be Red Cross Ready– join the American Red Cross for a presentation about preparedness; learn what you can do to be prepared for the upcoming storm season.

When: Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Time: 6:00-7:00 pm    

Where: Ripon Public Library

Silver Creek Room

120 Jefferson Street

Ripon, WI 54971

Why: Learn -

  • How you can help be better prepare for the Spring Storms.
  • How the Red Cross helps people following a disaster.
  • How you can tap into Red Cross resource.
  • How you can become a Red Cross volunteer.

For more information on this presentation, or other information on preparedness, please contact Lisa Stanchfield at (920)922-3450, or Lisa.Stanchfield@redcross.org.

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Be Prepared – Get the Tornado App

Posted on March 4, 2013 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter

New ImageGet your family and home ready for a tornado with the official Tornado App from the American Red Cross. The Tornado app puts everything you need to know prepare for a tornado – and all that comes with it – in the palm of your hand. With interactive quizzes and simple step-by-step advice it’s never been easier to be ready.

You can download the app directly from the iTunes or Google Play app stores.

FEATURES: 

  • Simple step-by-step instructions to help you know what-to-do even if the cell towers and TVs are down. Prioritized actions for before, during, and after requires no mobile connectivity.
  • Audible siren that automatically goes off even if app is closed when NOAA issues a TORNADO WARNING helping to reduce the chance of sleeping through an actual warning.
  • Push notification sent when a WARNING expires – especially important if power goes out while you or your family are in your safe room.
  • Help distant friends and family in tornado alley with ability to receive tornado watch and warning alerts based on their location from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
  • Red Cross location-based open shelters map for when you need it most.
  • Be ready should a tornado hit by learning how to assemble an emergency kit for your family in the event of power outage or evacuation.
  • Reduce your household’s stress and anxiety should a tornado hit by learning to make and practice an emergency plan.
  • Preloaded content means you have instant access to all safety information at anytime, even without reception or an Internet connection.
  • Interactive quizzes allow you to earn badges that you can share with your friends and show off your tornado knowledge.
  • Know how many tornadoes have occurred in your area.
  • Know the difference between a warning and alert.
  • Learn how to deal with food and water impacted by floods and power outages.
  • Simply let friends/family know you’re safe with customizable “I’m Safe” notification sharable thru social media, text and email.
  • Let others know where you are with the Toolkit’s stobe light, flashlight and audible alert functions

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Woodland Elementary Getting Prepared!

Posted on May 11, 2012 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter
Thank you to volunteers & staff for providing disaster education to the students at Woodland Elementary, in Kingsford, MI & for the student raising money for the Red Cross at their “Walk for Victims” Friday” event.
 
 

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Tornado Awareness Week! Are you Prepared?

Posted on April 17, 2012 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter

Information courtesy Wisconsin Emergency Management:

Did you know Wisconsin averages 23 tornadoes each year.  Now is the time to be prepared for storm season.  Wisconsin’s Tornado & Severe Weather Awareness Week is April 16-20, 2012.

Once again, Wisconsin Emergency Management, ReadyWisconsin, and the National Weather Service have teamed up to help you and your family get ready for severe weather and to participate in the upcoming statewide tornado drill which is set for Thursday, April 19 with a Mock Tornado Watch issued at 1:00 p.m. and a Mock Tornado Warning issued at 1:45 p.m.

Check out these sites for additional tips and information to make sure you and your family are prepared!

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Picking Up Pieces after Midwest Tornado Outbreak

Posted on April 16, 2012 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter

The American Red Cross continues to help people across the Midwest after the weekend’s devastating tornadoes.

In Oklahoma alone, the Red Cross estimates that more than 600 homes were affected by this weekend’s tornadoes, including 87 homes that were destroyed and 49 sustaining major damage. Another area hit hard is Thurman, Iowa, where FEMA reports 75 percent of the town sustained damage.

Red Cross disaster teams are operating shelters, providing meals and distributing relief supplies throughout the affected communities. The Red Cross is also moving additional relief supplies into the tornado-stricken areas, including comfort kits, tarps, coolers, rakes and other cleanup supplies.

VOLUNTEERS LEAD DISASTER RESPONSE

Many of the Red Cross responders are volunteers. It was a busy weekend in Iowa as they helped in communities hit by the tornadoes, and also responded to large fires and other severe weather. The weekend began with volunteers helping people affected by a large apartment building fire in Des Moines. Tornadoes slammed into the Thurman and Creston areas Saturday. By Sunday morning, volunteers were on the scene supporting firefighters responding to a multiple business fire in Titonka.

After the tornadoes struck in Thurman and Creston, volunteers opened two shelters, activated three mobile feeding trucks, and began damage assessment. Red Cross volunteers served more than 1,650 meals and snacks Sunday and provided emotional support for clients.

Red Cross volunteers also responded to severe weather damage in Sioux City, Des Moines, Knoxville, Council Bluffs and Keokuk County. Most of the cases reported were wind and tree damage to homes. In Titonka, volunteers served 250 meals to firefighters battling a multi-business fire. 

“There were a significant number of disaster-related incidents this weekend which affected many people’s lives here in Iowa,” said Leslie Schaffer, Red Cross spokesperson. “Our volunteers have really worked tirelessly to make sure people had a safe place to stay, food to eat and help getting their lives back on track. Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the storms and fires this weekend, not only here but across the country.”

SAFETY STEPS

The Red Cross reminds people who live in the tornado-damaged areas that they should stay out of damaged buildings. Other safety steps include:

  • Wear long pants, long-sleeved shirts and sturdy shoes when examining homes for damage.
  • Watch out for fallen power lines or broken gas lines and report them to the utility company immediately.
  • Use battery-­powered flashlights when examining buildings—do NOT use candles.
  • If someone notices a gas smell or hears a hissing noise, they should open a window and get everyone out of the building quickly. They should also call the gas company or fire department.
  • Keep animals under control.
  • Clean up spilled medications, bleaches, gasoline or other flammable liquids that could become a fire hazard.

HOW TO HELP

People can help those affected by disasters like these tornadoes, as well as countless crises at home and around the world, by making a donation to support American Red Cross Disaster Relief. Consider making a donation today by visiting www.redcross.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Contributions may also be sent to someone’s local Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Contributions enable the Red Cross to prepare for and provide shelter, food, emotional support and other assistance in response to disasters.

About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies more than 40 percent of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.

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More Red Cross volunteers head south

Posted on May 11, 2011 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter

23 Northeast Wisconsinites currently deployed

Click on the photo to see video of this story.

Flooding of the lower Mississippi River is getting worse, though much of Memphis was spared Tuesday.

Water flooded low-lying areas and submerged some homes.

Officials are cautiously optimistic that levees will hold, preventing widespread damage.

However volunteers, including some from Northeast Wisconsin, are pouring in to assist.

The American Red Cross says it now has 23 people from our area in Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama.

They’re helping with a previous disaster and the current one.

“People losing loved ones or neighbors that they’ve know for ages,” volunteer Joyce Keyes said. “You know they really get to you and you feel a lot of empathy for their loss.”

Keyes is stationed in North Central Alabama, one of the areas hit hardest by tornados in late April.

“The houses are just totally leveled the trees are stripped and broken,” she explained.

Luckily the area she’s in is not dealing with flooding.

As a mental health professional, her focus is on helping disaster victims deal with their emotional wounds.

Steven Maricque, Executive Director of the the Red Cross’s Lakeland Chapter, says people like Keyes are in demand right now.

Two more mental health workers from the area will leave for the South next week.

But, Maricque says all eyes are on Mississippi.

“It’s a fluid situation that develops day to day based on how that water is moving,” he said. “Do we get additional rainfall that might require more people?”

Maricque says the chapter’s emergency response vehicle is in Memphis with volunteers.

But the situation is taxing resources.

“We support and provide relief for over 75,000 disasters a year in this country, but the neighborhood fires the family fires those don’t stop,” Maricque said.

The Red Cross is hoping donations won’t either.

Agency efforts in the Alabama and Mississippi tornados are expected to cost $30 million, and the total is rising with the river in Tennessee.

 

 

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Red Cross Volunteer Gets Ready for His Sixth National Disaster Assignment

Posted on May 4, 2011 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter

Harvey on his 2008 Deployment for Hurricane Gustav.

The American Red Cross East Central Wisconsin Chapter is deploying disaster volunteer, Harvey Lorenz, of Neenah, to Birmingham, Alabama to assist with the April tornadoes that devastated a wide spread area of the south almost one week ago.

This will be Lorenz’s sixth national disaster deployment. He has assisted for Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Wilma, Hurricane Gustav, the ice storms in Wichita, Kansas and the flooding in Union Grove, Wisconsin.

Because of his extensive banking background and specialized Red Cross training, Lorenz will serve as a supervisor of financial and statistical information in Birmingham.

How to Help: The Red Cross depends on financial donations to help in times of disaster. Those who want to help people affected by disasters like wildfires, floods and tornadoes, as well as countless crises at home and around the world, can make a donation to support American Red Cross Disaster Relief. This gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for and provide shelter, food, emotional support and other assistance in response to disasters. Visit www.redcross.org or call 1-800-RED-CROSS, and people can also text the word “REDCROSS” to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Contributions may also be sent to local American Red Cross chapters or to the American Red Cross,P.O. Box 37243,Washington,DC20013.

About the American Red Cross: The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation’s blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.

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Red Cross Send Five People to Help for Tornado Relief Efforts in Mississippi

Posted on May 3, 2011 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter

(l-r) Joe Gerrits, Judy Gregory, Disaster Services Director, and Jim Meverden signing their paper work to be deployed.

The American Red Cross Lakeland Chapter has dispatched five disaster volunteers, to Jackson,MS to assist with the April tornadoes that devastated so much of the south almost one week ago.

For this assignment all five volunteers are going out in bulk distribution, but may be reassigned once they get on the ground.

James Meverden of Green Bay, this will be his third assignment. He assisted back in 2005 for Hurricane Katrina & Rita and again in 2008 for Hurricane Gustav and Ike.

This will be the first national disaster assignment for the other four individuals.

Joseph Gerrits of Depere, said “I am very excited and nervous with anticipation for what will await me and I am very surprised I was able to sleep last night.”

Jerry Prellwitz, of Green Bay, commented that ever since he became a disaster volunteer helping on local assignments, he has waited for his chance to go out on a national assignment to gain that additional experience.

Donna LaPlante, of Little Suamico, is excited and really glad to be able to do something to help the people. “Of course, I am also very nervous,” said LaPlante.”

The final member going out is Thomas Kendall, of Green Bay.

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Red Cross Sends Help After Deadly Tornadoes Blast Through the South

Posted on April 28, 2011 by American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Chapter

Disaster workers, meals, equipment and blood headed to area hardest hit. 

WASHINGTON, Thursday, April 28, 2011 — The American Red Cross is helping thousands of people after Wednesday’s deadly tornadoes destroyed neighborhoods throughout the southern region of the country.

“Our thoughts and sympathies are with those who lost loved ones or have suffered through these deadly storms,” said Charley Shimanski, senior vice president, Red Cross Disaster Services. “Red Cross disaster teams are working around the clock to help the thousands of people whose lives are turned upside down. More Red Cross assistance is on the way.”

“Our top priority right now is to provide food and shelter to the thousands of people throughout the South and Midwest affected by these storms,” Shimanski said, adding that the Red Cross is also distributing relief supplies and providing emotional support and basic health services to disaster survivors.

Hardest hit was Alabama, where Governor Robert Bentley has activated National Guard troops to help in the devastated areas. The Red Cross is sending disaster workers, materials, blood products and equipment into the state. Nearly 40 emergency response vehicles are on the way, along with 25,000 ready-to-eat meals. Red Cross Blood Services is moving hundreds of blood products into the area, and Red Cross nurses and mental health workers are being deployed to help people cope with the aftermath of this disaster.

American Red Cross Responds to Severe Spring Weather

More than 1,600 people sought refuge in 65 Red Cross shelters Wednesday night as the storms forced them from their homes. Red Cross shelters are open in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky, Arkansas, North Carolina and Texas.

“Tornadoes and floods have devastated communities and uprooted families across many states, and the Red Cross is working hand-in-hand with our federal and community partners to get assistance to people in need and help them recover,” Shimanski said.

More than half of the country has been affected by this continuous band of damaging weather, disrupting people’s lives from North Dakota to the East Coast. In the last several weeks, Red Cross disaster workers have provided thousands of overnight stays in shelters, distributed thousands of clean-up and comfort kits and served hundreds of thousands of meals and snacks.

The Red Cross is able to respond quickly when emergencies happen with the help of corporations who are members of the organization’s Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP). ADGP members pledge donations on an ongoing basis to allow the Red Cross to pre-position supplies and be ready to take immediate action when disasters occur.

ADGP members include Walmart, UPS, UnitedHealthcare, The TJX Companies, Inc., Target, State Street Foundation, State Farm, Southwest Airlines, Ryder Charitable Foundation, Northrup Grumman, Nationwide Insurance Foundation, Morgan Stanley, Merck, Lowe’s Companies, Inc.; Kraft Foods; Kimberly-Clark Corporation, John Deere Foundation, The Home Depot Foundation, GE Foundation, FedEx Corporation, Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Darden Restaurants, Inc, ConAgra Foods, Cisco Foundation, Aon, Altria and 3M.

The Red Cross depends on financial donations to help in times of disaster, both here in the United States and around the world. Those who want to help can make a donation to support American Red Cross Disaster Relief. To make a donation, visit www.redcross.org or call 1-800-RED-CROSS. Contributions may also be sent to local American Red Cross chapters or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013.

About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation’s blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. 


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