NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – The American Red Cross is in urgent need of volunteers to assist with hurricane relief efforts down south, as well as everyday emergencies in the New York area.
Desiree Ramos Reiner, chief external affairs officer for the American Red Cross in Greater New York, said the nonprofit is stretched thin as it responds to multiple disasters like Hurricane Milton, which tore through Florida on Wednesday night, two weeks after Hurricane Helene killed more than 200 people and caused catastrophic flooding in the Carolinas.
“Right now, there are more than 2,000 Red Cross workers on the ground supporting both the response to Helene and to Hurricane Milton,” Ramos Reiner said. “And this includes over 100 people from right here in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.”
People who volunteer would either go down to Florida or stay in the New York area to help with the response to fires and other local emergencies.
“While those folks are down in the southeast supporting events that are happening there, here we are still responding to home fires and local floods that are happening, and so we still need people to help in the everyday emergencies that are happening here,” Ramos Reiner said.
The Red Cross provides all the necessary training. The basic level of training—for example, to help in a shelter—takes 2.5 to 5 hours. Some of the training can be done online.
Visit RedCross.org to learn more or sign up. The Red Cross is also in need of blood and financial donations.