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History Repeats Itself: American Red Cross Now Responding in Oklahoma After Thursday Twisters Rip Towns
Americans Encouraged to Help by Calling 1-800 HELP NOW or Visiting www.redcross.orgEditor's note: Red Cross spokespeople are on the ground in Oklahoma City and are available for interviews throughout the evening, on Friday and the weekend. Call Ray Steen at 202/439-0721 to set up an interview.
WASHINGTON, May 8, 2003 — In what has already been a week of extremely destructive weather, Oklahomans took shelter as spring tornadoes slammed into towns south of Oklahoma City on Thursday, nearly four years to the day after suburban Moore was battered in an outbreak of twisters. American Red Cross volunteers and staff are now responding in communities throughout the region and in Kansas, which was also hard hit for the second time in less than a week. Family members seeking information on the safety of loved ones who may have been affected by these storms are urged to call the American Red Cross at 1-866-GET INFO, now activated 24 hours every day. Disaster victims can also call this toll-free number to find current shelter locations, information on Red Cross assistance and disaster recovery tips, or to speak with a mental health counselor. Thursday night tornadoes dropped on Oklahoma during the evening rush hour, injuring dozens, filling emergency rooms and sending commuters scrambling from their cars for safety. This outbreak of violent weather comes as more than 1,000 Red Cross relief workers continue their work in eight states, providing assistance to families affected by wicked weather in a historically dangerous week of storms. In just five days of May 2003, there have been 225 tornadoes, surpassing the May 2002 total for the entire month (204 tornadoes). In a case of history repeating itself, the town of Moore is in shock, battered by tornadoes for the second time in four years. On May 3, 1999, devastating tornadoes slammed into the Oklahoma City region, ripping into the Oklahoma City suburb. The deadly twisters damaged almost 8,100 homes -- destroying just over 3,100 -- throughout 15 counties in the state. The vast majority of damage was in two counties: Oklahoma County (Oklahoma City area) with 4,410 affected homes and Cleveland County (Moore area) with 2,088. This weather system spawned 74 tornadoes throughout Oklahoma and southern Kansas, killing nearly 50 people. Thanks to the generosity of financial donors to the Disaster Relief Fund, the American Red Cross was able to help 3,100 families, and serve 244,000 meals, through the hard working efforts of more than 4,000 Red Cross volunteers. Of particular note, professionally -trained Red Cross mental health crisis counselors were there to offer assistance to 15,100 individuals. A financial gift to the Disaster Relief Fund enables the Red Cross to provide food, shelter, mental health counseling and other assistance to those impacted by these tornadoes and severe storms, as well as thousands of other disasters across the country each year. It is vital to Red Cross relief efforts that the fund is healthy and viable to provide services for these large disasters and the hundreds of smaller disasters that the Red Cross responds to every year across the country. Since July 2002, the Red Cross has spent more than $85 million responding to 230 large-scale disasters, but raised only $26 million toward these efforts. Currently, the fund has a cash balance of only $5 million. Relief services are stretched and depleting the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. This fund is not a reserve; it is a working fund that needs continued replenishment when disaster strikes. As this tornado season continues and hurricane season approaches, one large storm could deplete the balance of the fund completely. A comfortable threshold for the fund is $56 million.
For more information on tornado preparedness, contact your local Red Cross chapter, visit www.redcross.org or call 1-866-GET INFO. All 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 these tornadoes and thousands of other disasters across the country each year 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 those in need. Call 1-800-HELP NOW 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, DC 20013. Internet users can make secure online credit card donations by visiting www.redcross.org.
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