ANCHORAGE (November 13, 2018) — The American Red Cross is on the ground throughout the State of Cali-fornia, providing shelter, food and comfort for thousands of people forced to leave their homes due to the deadly wildfires burning in both the northern and southern parts of the state.

The American Red Cross of Alaska has now deployed six volunteers in support of those displaced by the wild-fires. The volunteers hail from Anchorage, Kenai, Fairbanks and Delta Junction, and are providing support to vic-tims – many of whom were forced to flee their homes with no warning – by working in reunification services, health services, mental health services, and financial and statistical information services. One volunteer was sent to Ventura County to support those affected by the Hill and Woolsey Fires, and five have been sent to the Sacra-mento area to support those affected by the Camp Fire.

They join more than 500 other Red Cross volunteers who are providing help and support at evacuation centers to offer safe refuge for people impacted by these devastating fires. Overnight, more than 1,000 people sought refuge from the wildfires in 12 Red Cross and community evacuation centers across the state. Working with partners, the Red Cross has also served more than 24,000 meals and snacks. Volunteer mental health and health services professionals have provided more than 3,560 contacts to provide support and care to evacuees, and we’ve distributed more than 8,260 relief items for people forced from their homes.

FINDING LOVED ONES: People continue to search for missing loved ones and Red Cross reunification services are helping reconnect them as quickly as possible. These services include helping people communicate through the Red Cross Safe and Well website, as well as helping with urgent requests involving unaccompanied minors and separated children, reestablishing contact with family members who have been separated within the disaster area and working with partners to resolve reunification-related inquiries. There have been just over 5,700 Safe and Well registrations for the wildfires, as many as 63,600 searches, and more than 1,100 matches through Safe and Well.

If someone is looking for loved ones they can visit the Red Cross Safe and Well website at http://www.redcross.org/safeandwell. The site allows individuals and organizations to register and post mes-sages to indicate that they are safe, or to search for loved ones. The site is always available, open to the public and available in Spanish. Registrations and searches can be done directly on the website.

HOW YOU CAN HELP: Entire communities and families have been left reeling from these deadly wildfires. Help people affected by the California wildfires by visiting redcross.org, calling 1- 800-RED CROSS or texting the word CAWILDFIRES to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Donations enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from these disasters.

DOWNLOAD RED CROSS APPS: The Red Cross app “Emergency” can help keep you and your loved ones safe by putting vital information in your hand for more than 35 different severe weather and emergency alerts. The Red Cross First Aid App puts instant access to information on handling the most common first aid emergencies at your fingertips. Download these apps by searching for ‘American Red Cross’ in your app store or at redcross.org/apps.

About the American Red Cross of Alaska:
In FY18, the American Red Cross of Alaska offered food, shelter, comfort and hope to 892 Alaskans. We responded to 308 disasters. Our preparedness/Health and Safety teams installed 2,309 smoke alarms statewide and educated 1,722 youth through The Pillowcase Project. Additionally, our Service to the Armed Forces staff exchanged 1,161 emergency messages for U.S. military service personnel 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/Alaska or visit us on Twitter at @redcrossak.