38 Red Cross volunteers from Missouri sent around country for natural disaster response

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The American Red Cross of Missouri and Arkansas Region continue to have crews in several different locations across the United States as they respond to multiple different natural disasters.

According to a press release from the Red Cross, 47 volunteers from Missouri and Arkansas have been deployed to help with these disasters both nationally and locally here in Missouri.

Crews are helping with Maui's wildfires, forest fires in California and Washington, Hurricane Hillary in Southern California and Nevada, a tropical depression in Texas, flooding in Bollinger County, Missouri, and tornado relief in Missouri and Arkansas.

Missouri has 38 volunteers deployed, with three of them coming from the Central and Northern Missouri Chapter, according to the release.

The release states that three people have been deployed from the Central and Northern Missouri Chapters.:

• One is in California for Hurricane Hillary.
• One is in Hawaii for the Maui Wildfires.
• One is in Texas for the tropical storm Harold.

"We have had a request for a lot of volunteers to deploy to other parts of the country to support all of these disasters," Red Cross spokeswoman Sharon Watson said. "Hawaii was of court the big one that we first started sending people to."

Watson said volunteers primarily focus on shelters at the beginning of any disaster response.

"A lot of individuals are being asked to go in to help with setting up shelter and providing support to those in the shelter with meals and water and making sure that their needs are met as they come in," she said

Dispersing resources is the second step, but volunteers with special skills -- such as nurses, and mental health and IT specialists -- are also deployed to help those in need.

"People who have nursing skills, counseling skills, those are critical as we go into the sheltering stage because a lot of people are coming in with so many different needs," Watson said. "We want to make sure we have people there at the shelter to not only help with making sure they get you know, just the basics of food, water and a cot, a place to sleep, but also that their mental health and healthcare needs are met as well."

Watson said they do keep volunteers here locally if a natural disaster such as the flooding in Bollinger County and the Tornado relief in Missouri needs assistance.

Watson said they are always in need of volunteers, blood, and monetary donations.

You can Donate to the Red Cross here, find locations to Donate Blood here or find out more about Volunteering here.