Southern Tornadoes: Hundreds of Red Crossers Helping with Shelter, Food and Comfort

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SALVAGE WHAT WE CAN Red Crosser Eric Besson talks with Marcella McGee near McGee’s childhood home in Rolling Fork, Mississippi. McGee’s home, which she inherited from her mother two decades ago, was destroyed in last Friday’s devastating tornado. She wasn’t there at the time, but she has been present in the days since, working to reclaim what she can, such as pictures, important documents and some furniture that she believes she can clean up. “We’re just trying to salvage what we can salvage,” said McGee, who vowed to rebuild. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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ONE DAY AT A TIME Mary Robinson talks with Red Crosser Eric Besson near what had been Robinson’s home of 51 years in Rolling Fork, Mississippi. Mary and her husband James rode out the tornado from a bathtub in the interior of the home. After the storm had passed, the home had been demolished. The bathtub had been blown outside. Rain fell on their heads as they waited for a rescue team to help them out. Then they waited in a car until family came to pick them up. Mary Robinson sustained injuries from falling debris. “You’ve got to heal first,” Mary Robinson said. “Take it one day at a time.” Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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Red Crosser Eric Besson looks at damage caused by the horrific EF-4 tornado that struck Rolling Fork, Mississippi last Friday night. Entire blocks of homes were wiped out, with brick rubble, home debris and broken trees piled up next to neighborhood streets. As many as 2,000 structures across Mississippi received major damage or were destroyed by tornadoes on Friday. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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SOUTH CAROLINA HELPERS Red Cross volunteers Patricia and Bob DuBois conduct damage assessment in Rolling Fork, Mississippi. As many as 2,000 structures across Mississippi received major damage or were destroyed by tornadoes last Friday. Bob and Patricia DuBois are members of the Disaster Action Team in South Carolina and traveled to Mississippi to help. This was their first deployment since 2019.Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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FLORIDA HELPER Red Cross volunteer Terry Smith visits with Justin Russell and Jonah Russell in Rolling Fork, Mississippi. As many as 2,000 structures across Mississippi received major damage or were destroyed by tornadoes on Friday. Smith, who deployed in from Tampa Bay, Fla., was part of a team serving warm meals in one of the hardest-hit communities. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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WOKE UP TO HEARTBREAK Jeffrey Russell talks about the damage to his childhood home, where his mom still lives, and how he lived through the horrifying experience of being inside the home when the tornado struck. Russell, 42, was at his childhood home by happenstance, arriving to visit his mom about 20 minutes before the tornado. He saw it approaching and escorted his mom and three kids into an interior bedroom, where he used his body to cover them on the bed. No one was injured, but the damage was devastating, he said, pointing to the places he would play as a kid and the fallen tree he planted with his father decades ago. “We were waiting on daylight to see how bad it was,” Russell said. “We woke up to heartbreak.” Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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Red Crosser Eric Besson looks at damage caused by the horrific EF-4 tornado that struck Rolling Fork on Friday night. Entire blocks of homes were wiped out, with brick rubble, home debris and broken trees piled up next to neighborhood streets. As many as 2,000 structures across Mississippi received major damage or were destroyed by tornadoes on Friday. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

March 28, 2023

The American Red Cross is deeply saddened by the loss of life and incredible devastation in Mississippi after last Friday’s deadly tornadoes. Our hearts go out to all those affected by this disaster.

Entire communities have been destroyed and people have lost everything. Early estimates indicate as many as 2,000 structures have been destroyed or received major damage. The Red Cross is helping those affected now and will be supporting them in the days and weeks to come as they plan their next steps.

Severe weather has also impacted people in Alabama and Georgia and the Red Cross is on the ground in these two states, working with partners there to make sure people get the help they need.

RED CROSS RESPONSE In Mississippi, we are working with our partners to make sure everyone has a safe place to stay, meals, emotional support and comfort in the face of this deadly tornado. We have mobilized relief supplies and disaster workers and are coordinating with local and state officials to support people in need.

When it is safe to do so, Red Cross volunteers will continue to help assess the residential damage in affected communities. This work will help us to better understand what help families may need in the coming days and weeks.

Hundreds of trained Red Cross disaster workers are on the ground now in impacted areas across multiple states, including Mississippi, and more help is on the way. We are deploying additional disaster workers and several trailers carrying relief supplies, including tarps, clean-up kits, first aid kits and more to the area.

Trained Red Cross volunteers are also helping families cope during this challenging time and replacing prescription medications, eyeglasses or critical medical equipment like canes and wheelchairs. Working with partners, meals are being provided now and we are ramping up our capacity to provide thousands of meals in the coming days.

The Red Cross is not accepting donations of food, household items or clothing — as they cannot be distributed by our teams. Right now, financial donations are the quickest and best way to get help to those who need it most, which give people the flexibility to purchase what they need.

YOU CAN HELP make a difference in the lives of people affected by tornadoes and storms in the South. Visit redcross.org, call 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or text the word TORNADO to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Donations enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from these disasters. This includes providing food, shelter, relief supplies, emotional support, recovery planning and other assistance. Ensure your donation helps people affected by Southern Tornadoes & Storms by choosing that option on redcross.org/donate or through 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767).

This is a difficult time for everyone affected and it’s important for people to connect with and support each other.

Events like this can cause feelings of uncertainty and anxiety since no one knows what could potentially happen next. Be patient with yourself and others. It’s common to have any number of temporary stress reactions such as anger, frustration and anxiety.

Stay informed but limit media exposure of the events. Spend more time with family and friends, watch for signs of stress, offer your support and listen to one another. Take care of yourself. Eat healthy, drink water and get enough rest.

If you or a loved one needs help, reach out through the Disaster Distress Helpline for free 24/7 support by calling 1-800-985-5990 or texting TALKWITHUS to 66746.

Children may also react, in part, to what they see from the adults around them. When parents respond calmly and confidently, they can provide better support. Parents should let children talk about their fears while reassuring them about their safety. Talk with them in ways that they can easily understand. Let them guide the conversation; share details only when they ask about them. Limit exposure to news coverage of the event as children are especially vulnerable to stress reactions related to media.

DOWNLOAD OUR APP Download the free Emergency app for weather alerts, open Red Cross shelter locations and safety steps for different emergencies. Choose whether you want to view the content in English or Spanish with an easy-to-find language selector. Find this and all of the Red Cross apps in smartphone app stores by searching for the American Red Cross or going to redcross.org/apps.

FIND A SHELTER Anyone who has been affected by the storm is welcome to stop by a shelter to get information, a hot meal, charge their phone, pick up relief supplies and get other essential support. Find open shelters on redcross.org, the free Red Cross Emergency app or by calling 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) and selecting the disaster option.

You can also find shelters by following your local county and city officials on social media or monitoring local news.

Red Cross shelters are open to everyone in need regardless of race, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation or citizenship status, and all disaster assistance is free. We don’t require people to show any kind of identification to enter a shelter, just their name and where they were living before the disaster.

Our workers will do all they can to accommodate service animals and domesticated pets comfortably. If you go to a shelter, please bring your own animal crate, supplies, medications and food whenever possible. Depending on the situation, pets may need to be housed in a different location with support from animal welfare groups.

Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) Through the generosity of our American Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and Disaster Responder members, the American Red Cross is prepared before disaster strikes. ADGP and Disaster Responder members help secure a reliable funding base for disaster relief services that enables the Red Cross to respond immediately, meeting the needs of individuals and families affected by disaster, regardless of cost.

ADGP $1M Members: Amazon; American Airlines; Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Bank of America; Best Buy; Caterpillar Foundation; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; Costco Wholesale; Delta Air Lines; Elevance Health Foundation; Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation; FedEx; Lilly Endowment Inc.; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; McDonald’s Corporation; Microsoft Corp.; Nationwide Foundation; PayPal; PetSmart Charities; The Pfizer Foundation; The Starbucks Foundation; State Farm; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited; Truist Foundation; VSP Vision; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; and Wells Fargo.

ADGP $500K Members: Altria Group; American Express; Aon; Bread Financial; Capital One; CarMax; Citi Foundation; The Clorox Company; Danaher Foundation; Darden Foundation; Delta Dental; Dollar General; Edison International; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Ford Motor Company Fund; Fox Corporation; General Motors; Google.org The Home Depot Foundation; International Paper; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; Kaiser Permanente; The Kroger Co. Foundation; Liberty Mutual Insurance; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Mastercard; Merck; Mondelēz International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; PepsiCo Foundation; Salesforce; Southeastern Grocers Gives Foundation & Southeastern Grocers, home of Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; UPS; USAA; Visa Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; and The Wawa Foundation.

Disaster Responder $250K Members: 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe; The AES Corporation; Ameriprise Financial; Assurant; AT&T; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; Avangrid Foundation; Barclays; Big 5 Sporting Goods; CDW; Choice Hotels International; Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; The Coca-Cola Foundation; CSX; DHL Supply Chain; The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation; Discover; Duke Energy; Dutch Bros Foundation; Equitable; FirstEnergy Corporation; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation, LLC; HCA Healthcare; Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation; HP Foundation; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; The Kraft Heinz Company Foundation; The Labcorp Charitable Foundation; Lenovo Foundation; LHC Group; LKQ; Macy’s, Inc.; Major League Baseball; Marathon Petroleum Foundation, Inc.; Martin Marietta; Mattress Firm; McKesson Foundation; MetLife Foundation; Neiman Marcus Group; NextEra Energy, Inc.; Northrop Grumman; Northwestern Mutual; Old Dominion Freight Line; Organon; Pacific Life Foundation; Procter & Gamble; Prudential; Raytheon Technologies; Reckitt; Rodan + Fields Prescription for Change Project, a project of New Venture Fund; Ross Stores Foundation; Ryder System, Inc.; San Manuel Band of Mission Indians; Santander; Security Finance’s Lending Hand Foundation; ServiceNow; Stanley Black & Decker; Southwest Airlines; Tata Consultancy Services; U-Haul International; U.S. Bank Foundation; and Zurich.

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or cruzrojaamericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.