Red Cross Responds to Severe Weather Across Multiple States

WASHINGTON, March 7, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American Red Cross is providing comfort and support across multiple states in response to wildfires, flooding, tornadoes and severe weather.

WILDFIRES Wildfires are burning thousands of acres in Texas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas and Florida. Red Cross workers opened shelters in Kansas and Texas and are providing snacks and water for firefighters in Oklahoma. The Red Cross will be on hand to help for as long as needed. In Texas, a wildfire has already burned 23,000 acres northeast of Amarillo, forcing people to leave their homes. A wildfire in Logan County, Colorado, also caused people to evacuate the area after the fire burned 25,000 acres. Several wildfires are burning in Oklahoma in Alfalfa, Harper, Ellis, Woodward, Beaver, Logan and Payne counties, and several small towns are under evacuation orders. A wildfire forced the town of Wilson in Ellsworth County, Kansas, to evacuate, and fires are also burning in Reno County in the state. And in Florida, fires damaged hundreds of acres in Lee County and damaged several homes.

TORNADOES In what has been characterized as the worst tornado season since 2012, Red Cross workers are helping people impacted by tornadoes in several states across the Midwest. In Arkansas, about 200 homes have been affected. In Missouri, Red Cross workers opened shelters after tornadoes touched down in Smithville, Clinton and Oak Grove. The Red Cross is also helping people in Seymour, Iowa after a tornado caused damaged and ruptured a gas line.

FLOODING In California, more than 255 people remain in shelters, where flood warnings continue in some areas. Red Cross workers are providing shelter, food and relief supplies, and are helping people plan their next steps. Officials are also warning that people should avoid the possibly contaminated flood waters.

OTHER RESPONSES A blizzard in Ward County, North Dakota, prevented about 40 high school students from getting home – and the Red Cross worked with school officials to provide help to the stranded students. In Grady County, Oklahoma, a train derailment kept residents from their homes. The Red Cross helped those affected and also provided support to emergency responders.

WEATHER REMAINS A THREAT Parts of the country face the threat of more severe weather in the coming days and weeks, and the Red Cross is monitoring weather regularly to respond if needed. Severe thunderstorms are possible for the lower Mississippi and Tennessee valleys. Freezing rain is predicted for the northeast and heavy snow may hit parts of the Cascades and Rocky Mountains. The threat of wildfire conditions continues for portions of the Southwest, Great Plains, Central/Southern Rockies and the Mississippi Valley due to dry conditions and forecast high winds.

HOW YOU CAN HELP The Red Cross depends on the generous support of the American public to fulfill its crucial mission. Help people affected by disasters like floods, wildfires and countless other crises by making a donation to support Red Cross Disaster Relief. These gifts enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small. Make a donation today by visiting www.redcross.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 gift.

CORPORATIONS HELP The generous donations from members of the Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and the Disaster Responder Program enable the American Red Cross to prepare communities for disasters big and small, respond whenever and wherever disasters occur and help families during the recovery process.

ADGP $1 Million members are: American Airlines; Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Anthem Foundation; Caterpillar Foundation; Costco Wholesale; Delta Air Lines; Disney; Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation; FedEx; General Motors Foundation; Grainger; The Home Depot Foundation; Humble Bundle; LDS Charities; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; Mazda North American Operations; Nationwide Foundation; State Farm; Target; UPS; VSP Global; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; and The Wawa Foundation.

ADGP $500,000 members are: 3M; Altria Group; American Express; Aon; Bank of America; Boise Paper; Capital One; Cisco Foundation; Citi Foundation; Darden Restaurants, Inc. Foundation; Discover; Edison International; Farmers Insurance; Ford Motor Company; John Deere Foundation; Johnson Controls; McDonald's Corporation; Medtronic Foundation; Meijer; Merck Foundation; Mondelēz International Foundation; National Grid; PepsiCo Foundation; Procter & Gamble Company; Reynolds American Foundation; Ryder; Southwest Airlines; Sprint; Sunoco; the TJX Companies, Inc.; United Airlines; and Wells Fargo.

Disaster Responder Program members are: Alcoa; Astellas USA Foundation; AT&T; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; AXA; Ball Foundation; BNY Mellon; CarMax; The Clorox Company; Cox Automotive; DTE Energy Foundation; Duke Energy; Entergy Corporation; Harbor Freight Tools; Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation; Hi-Rez Studios; HP Foundation; IBM Corporation; IHG Foundation; IKEA; Ingersoll Rand Foundation; Land O'Lakes, Inc.; Morgan Stanley; Neiman Marcus Group; New Balance Foundation; Northrop Grumman Corporation; Northwestern Mutual and the Northwestern Mutual Foundation; Prudential Foundation; PuroClean Disaster Recovery; SC Johnson; ScriptRelief; SERVPRO; Southeastern Grocers Home of BI-LO Harveys Winn Dixie; T O Y O T A; U-Haul International; United Technologies Corporation; The USAA Foundation; U.S. Bank; and Visa.

About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 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 cruzrojaamericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.

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SOURCE American Red Cross