Cross Blog

Red Cross, Johnson & Wales and Subway team up for disaster preparedness

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

In the event of a natural disaster hitting the Tar Heel State, the American Red Cross, Johnson & Wales University, a world-renowned culinary institution and SUBWAY® restaurants of North Carolina are joining forces to provide meals for the victims.

To prepare for an event of such magnitude, JWU students and employees, SUBWAY franchisees, Red Cross staff and other support personnel assembled 500 boxed lunches at the JWU Charlotte Campus culinary labs on Monday.

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How Red Cross Works With Detainees

From Red Cross Chat

Many of you may have seen news headlines over the weekend stating the Red Cross will receive names and locations of detainees being held in transitional camps in Afghanistan and Iraq from the U.S. government. What you may not have realized is the Red Cross referred to in the news articles is not the American Red Cross; it is the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) – a neutral organization mandated by the Geneva Conventions to visit people detained in relation to conflict around the world. Their job is not to judge the people and governments involved, but to ensure the detainees are treated humanely and according to international humanitarian law.

From reading these stories, you may have also noticed that the ICRC has declined to comment on these specific reports. The ICRC firmly believes that confidentiality between it, governments and detainees is an essential tool that allows it to build trust, open channels of communication and influence change worldwide. By consistently maintaining this approach, the ICRC was able to visit more than 500,000 detainees in than 80 countries in 2008. Included in this figure, the ICRC visited with people captured in the fight against terrorism and held at U.S. detention facilities in Bagram, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Over the years, there has been intensive dialogue between the ICRC and the United States on this issue. The ICRC welcomes the various detention-related decisions taken by the U.S. government that President Obama formalized on January 22. They see these orders as an opportunity for a thorough review of the status of all detainees and of the conditions and procedures related to their detention.

If you’re interested in learning more about the ICRC, you can read about it’s role related to U.S. detention and how international humanitarian law applies to the fight against terrorism on its Web site. You can also enroll in an International Humanitarian Law workshop offered by American Red Cross chapters. That’s our role – to educate people in the United States about the Geneva Conventions. You may recall the American Red Cross recently hosted a petition via Facebook Causes advocating for this training to be included in high school settings.

Hurricane Bill update

Monday, August 24, 2009

Court Ogilvie explains how the American Red Cross is preparing for Hurricane Bill and lets you know what you can expect from the storm as well as how to prepare for it yourself.

Vandals break into Red Cross disaster response vehicle

Thursday, August 20, 2009

On Wednesday night, a Red Cross disaster response vehicle was vandalized. Two back doors were ripped from the vehicle and the GPS was stolen.

Repairs could cost our organization thousands of dollars.

Want to help?

You can make a donation online or through the mail.

Red Cross responds to chemical spill in Statesville

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Photo courtesy of Paul Webster with Iredell County Emergency ManagementThe Greater Carolinas Chapter of the American Red Cross set up an evacuation shelter following a chlorine leak at a facility on North Center Street.

The shelter was located at the Statesville Civic Center on Broad Street, where Red Cross staff and volunteers provided food and drinks for those affected by the evacuation.

The following was taken from an article written by Donna Swicegood of the Statesville Record & Landmark:

A chlorine leak inside a South Statesville plant resulted in the evacuation of neighborhoods around the plant for about two hours Monday morning.

Statesville Fire Department Deputy Chief David Cline said the leak was in a 2,000-pound cylinder-like tank inside Bartlett Milling on South Center Street.

The leak was a small one, but those living southeast of the plant were evacuated as a precaution, Cline said. Most people were advised to stay inside and turn off the air conditioning, he said.

Between 50 and 80 employees were inside the plant when the leak was noticed, and all evacuated safely, Cline said.

The Mooresville Fire Department’s Hazardous Materials team responded to the scene and contained the leak, while SFD personnel helped wash down those firefighters who went inside the plant to contain the leak.

Cline said because of the potential problems with chlorine, the decision was made to evacuate neighborhoods to the southeast of the plant.

Statesville police officers went door-to-door telling residents about the situation, and asking them to go to the Statesville Civic Center, where the American Red Cross set up a shelter.

One person needed transportation and ICATS took them to the civic center. At one point, about 80 people, mostly Bartlett employees, were at the civic center.

The message sent out in a half-mile radius around the plant instructed people to stay inside and turn off air conditioners. Around 1 p.m., the message was sent that everything was clear and a/c units could be turned back on.

Cline said everything went as smoothly as possible. “Everybody did a good job,” he said.

My name is Cory, I am a lifeguard

Monday, August 17, 2009

From Red Cross Chat

This message was just left for us on our YouTube channel by Cory aka Lifesaver of the Day.

Hi, my name is Cory. I am a lifeguard. Today was our busiest day all year. We had ten day camps come and swim, leaving about 150 kids in a pretty small pool (some in, some out) I was on duty, when another lifeguard blew the whistle and as I looked up I saw a group of about 50 patrons all standing over someone, with audible frantic calls. I saw the lifeguard there run inside, so me and a fellow lifeguard immediately cleared the pool.

I ran up to the scene, to find a 3 year old boy with vomit spewing out of his mouth like a rabid dog. His eyes were rolled back, and a day camp supervisor was giving chest compressions. I immediately grabbed an ARC pocket mask and assisted in giving two person CPR. Every time I gave a breath, the boy would clinch his teeth and make this grunting sound like he was struggling very hard. Eventually after about 5 cycles, I gave two more breaths and the boy started to cry, and a few seconds later he was totally crying. We both rolled him into a recovery position and the EMS put him on a stretcher. The boy is okay now.

I just wanted to thank all of you in the ARC for doing what you do, and for giving such good training for lifeguards. I am proud to be an ARC certified lifeguard, and I am confident in my ability to give proper care thanks to your course and to your instructors.

-Cory-

Sign up for a water safety class today

My name is Cory, I am a lifeguard

From Red Cross Chat

This message was just left for us on our YouTube channel by Cory aka Lifesaver of the Day.

Hi, my name is Cory. I am a lifeguard. Today was our busiest day all year. We had ten day camps come and swim, leaving about 150 kids in a pretty small pool (some in, some out) I was on duty, when another lifeguard blew the whistle and as I looked up I saw a group of about 50 patrons all standing over someone, with audible frantic calls. I saw the lifeguard there run inside, so me and a fellow lifeguard immediately cleared the pool.

I ran up to the scene, to find a 3 year old boy with vomit spewing out of his mouth like a rabid dog. His eyes were rolled back, and a day camp supervisor was giving chest compressions. I immediately grabbed an ARC pocket mask and assisted in giving two person CPR. Every time I gave a breath, the boy would clinch his teeth and make this grunting sound like he was struggling very hard. Eventually after about 5 cycles, I gave two more breaths and the boy started to cry, and a few seconds later he was totally crying. We both rolled him into a recovery position and the EMS put him on a stretcher. The boy is okay now.

I just wanted to thank all of you in the ARC for doing what you do, and for giving such good training for lifeguards. I am proud to be an ARC certified lifeguard, and I am confident in my ability to give proper care thanks to your course and to your instructors.

-Cory-

Sign up for a water safety class today

Red Cross prepares as Felicia heads toward Hawaii

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

From RedCross.org:
The American Red Cross is ready to help as residents of Hawaii brace themselves for the arrival of Tropical Storm Felicia sometime Tuesday.
For nearly a week, the Red Cross Hawaii State Chapter has been recruiting and training local volunteers to help with anticipated shelter and feeding needs.  In addition, the chapter’s emergency response teams will be equipped with the Rapid Data Management System (RDMS).  These handheld devices allow for faster, more accurate reporting of damage assessment to dwellings such as homes and apartment buildings.

The Pacific storm was expected to bring high winds and heavy rain to the islands of Maui, Lanai, Molokai and Oahu.  According to news reports, a flash flood watch has been issued for the islands and officials are warning residents to be on the alert for high surf.

From Red Cross Chat

Little known facts about storms named Felicia:
According to Wikipedia, the name Felicia has been used for three tropical cyclones in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. Felicia replaced Fefa, which was retired following the 1991 season.

1997’s Hurricane Felicia
2003’s Tropical Storm Felicia
2009’s Hurricane Felicia

You can follow @AmericanRedCrossHI on Twitter for updates from the Hawaii Red Cross as the storm moves through.

Follow NOAA updates. Here’s the latest issued at 2 a.m. August 10:

...FELICIA AIMING TOWARD THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS…

A TROPICAL STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR OAHU...THE BIG ISLAND
OF HAWAII...AND FOR ALL OF MAUI COUNTY...WHICH INCLUDES THE
ISLANDS OF MAUI...KAHOOLAWE...LANAI...AND MOLOKAI. A TROPICAL
STORM WATCH MEANS THAT TROPICAL STORM CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE
WITHIN THE WATCH AREA...GENERALLY WITHIN THE NEXT 36 TO 48 HOURS.
A TROPICAL STORM WARNING MAY BE REQUIRED FOR PORTIONS OF THE AREA
CURRENTLY UNDER THE WATCH LATER TODAY.

INTERESTS ON KAUAI AND NIIHAU SHOULD CONTINUE TO CLOSELY MONITOR
THE FUTURE PROGRESS OF FELICIA.

AT 200 AM HST...1200 UTC...THE CENTER OF TROPICAL STORM FELICIA
WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 20.6 NORTH...LONGITUDE 149.7 WEST OR
ABOUT 355 MILES EAST-NORTHEAST OF HILO...HAWAII AND ABOUT 530
MILES EAST OF HONOLULU...HAWAII.

FELICIA IS MOVING TOWARD THE WEST NEAR 10 MPH AND THIS MOTION IS
EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH TUESDAY. ON THIS TRACK...THE OUTER
WINDS FROM FELICIA ARE EXPECTED TO REACH THE EASTERNMOST HAWAIIAN
ISLANDS LATE TONIGHT.

MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 50 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS. GRADUAL
WEAKENING IS FORECAST DURING THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. FELICIA IS
EXPECTED TO REACH THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS AS EITHER A TROPICAL STORM
OR A TROPICAL DEPRESSION.

TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS NOW EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO 140 MILES FROM
THE CENTER.

Red Cross system tested by FEMA drill

Monday, August 10, 2009

Every two years, the American Red Cross is tested and judged by FEMA representatives to ensure that the organization is prepared to handle a nuclear drill.

On Aug. 6, the Greater Carolinas Chapter – in particular the Lake Norman and Statesville offices – completed the McGuire Nuclear Disaster Sheltering Drill. Approximately 20 volunteers prepared to handle activities surrounding Red Cross response:  communications, registration, canteen, nursing, mental health and, of course, distributing cots and blankets.

The FEMA representatives created a situation in which there was radioactivity and selected someone to pretend to set off an alarm. They then had that person to go through the process of pretending to be washed and cleaned. Of course, there were “pretend” problems created to test the system.

For example, someone approached the Red Cross and pretended to become very upset because they had been separated from their 18-year-old son and was unable to find him. The Red Cross volunteers handled matters beautifully. We feel it was a successful event. We should know in a few weeks if we have areas that need to be changed or improved.

Storms damage homes in Union County

Friday, August 07, 2009

The Union County Chapter of the American Red Cross responded to a severe thunderstorm in the downtown Monroe area on Wednesday night. 

For a brief time, the City of Monroe opened its Emergency Operation Center and had Red Cross representation. The Red Cross Disaster Action Team responded with canteen support and were ready to activate shelter operations if necessary. 

Approximately 25 homes were affected by the storm in varying degrees. After determining a shelter was not necessary, disaster volunteers activated the Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) and delivered canteen support to first responders and homeowners. 

Individual cases opened where necessary (only two to date).  On Thursday, the chapter did delivered lunch and beverages to neighborhoods where many are cleaning debris in their yards.

The chapter contacted the Baptist Men’s Disaster Group, who will be assisting with debris removal tomorrow for homeowners requesting this assistance.

The mayor of Monroe wrote a letter to Kathy Bragg, director of the Union County Chapter:

Dear Kathy:

On behalf of the Monroe City Council and the nearly 40,000 city residents, please accept my highest and most sincere appreciation for what you, your staff and your volunteers did for the City of Monroe on the night of Aug. 5 and the days following. The storm that downed dozens of trees, knocked out power to thousands of households and closed several roads was unexpected and frightening, but having representatives from the Red Cross working side-by-side with city staff and emergency personnel helped to ensure the safety of our residents and the well-being of our staff members as they worked through the night.

The compassion and professional response shown by your staff and volunteers was exemplary and only reinforced in me the fact that your organization is ready, willing and able to respond to any community need.  The actions of your staff and volunteers show that they are not only well-trained, but also kind and compassionate.

The City of Monroe is fortunate to have an agency like the Union County Chapter of the American Red Cross as a community partner. Your agency provides a service unlike any other. Your ability to muster volunteers in the middle of the night to assist displaced residents or to provide food for emergency responders working through the night is something that has not gone unnoticed.

Please accept this letter of appreciation as a small token of thanks for all you have done for the City of Monroe. We can all rest a little easier knowing that you, your staff and your volunteers will be there to answer the call should we be faced with an emergency like this in the future. Thank you once again for what you do.

Sincerely,
Bobby G. Kilgore
Mayor, City of Monroe

For more information, visit the Union County Red Cross Web page.