It’s hard to imagine the fear that can grip you during a home fire. With the home you know and love ablaze, you barely have a moment to process the situation. On July 20, 2020, theunthinkable happened to Kayla Senn and her two young children. They were sound asleep when their home caught fire, and they just had enough time to get out.

Red Cross Disaster Action Team volunteers responded to the scene, providing immediate assistance - and much more.

"We were in such state of shock and confusion, that it was so amazing for somebody to come up and say, I know you're going through something right now and you can't really think straight, but we're here to hold your hand and walk you through it."

Red Cross volunteers are there to offer comfort and support at a moment’s notice. For survivors like Kayla, this means so much."I was so humbled and so grateful. I felt connected to the Red Cross and to whoever my donor was in such a grateful way."

Home fires are the most common emergencies our team responds to -- taking an average of seven lives each day and injuring dozens more.

Here are some notable numbers for our region (January 1-October 31, 2020):

• 888 responses to local disasters
• 1,463 households received emergency aid
• 4,062 individual lives were impacted
  

You can make the difference for a family facing an unexpected emergency today. To help the Red Cross respond to everyday disasters like home fires, please visit redcross.org/donate.

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