Texas Welcomes Help from American Red Cross Following Hurricane Dolly

Volunteer Workers Spreading Out in Southern Texas

Editorial Note: Photos of American Red Cross Response to Hurricane Dolly are Available in our Online Newsroom accessible from the Home Page of Redcross.org

by Beth Boone

Sunday, July 27, 2008 — Communities from South Padre to Laredo are breathing a sigh of relief following the departure of Tropical Depression Dolly. Dolly hit South Padre Island on Wednesday, July 23, 2008, as a Category 2 Hurricane, and brought fierce winds and buckets of rain with her to Southeast Texas. Dolly weakened as she traveled across the state, but left plenty of damaged communities in her wake. American Red Cross workers have moved people and supplies farther into affected areas as areas are deemed safe.

Residents pick up supplies from the American Red Cross in Santa Rosa, Texas. Photo Credit: Russell Hubbard, American Red Cross

Red Cross volunteers and employees from Texas and many other parts of the country have been on the ground providing help to those in need. Kitchens have been set up through a partnership between Red Cross and the Southern Baptist Convention and have been serving thousands of meals each day. Feeding trucks, called Emergency Response Vehicles, are delivering meals to people who stayed home through the storm or have returned home to begin cleaning up. More than 110,000 meals and snacks have been served to hungry and tired residents in Southern Texas since Dolly passed.

People also found shelter with Red Cross following the storm; more than one thousand overnight stays have been recorded and shelters remain open in Hidalgo and Cameron counties. As people from large and small towns begin to take stock of the wind and flood damage caused by Dolly, they are returning home to see what needs to be done next. The Red Cross offers the following tips to residents:
The American Red Cross has issued tips for after the hurricane:

• Keep listening to NOAA Weather Radio or local radio or TV stations for instructions.
• Inspect your home for damage.
• Use flashlights in the dark; do not use candles.
• Power Outage Safety
• Food Safety
• Portable Generator Safety
• Water treatment
• Chainsaw Safety

How You Can Help
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 hurricanes, 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-RED CROSS 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, DC20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org.

Related Content:

• Red Cross Responds as Tropical Storm Dolly Continues to Ravage Texas
• Hurricane Dolly Makes Landfall as Red Cross Volunteers Assist Evacuees

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