Volunteer disaster responders with the American Red Cross of Chicago & Northern Illinois responded to 22 fires from Monday, November 25 through today in the Chicago & Northern Illinois area including fires in Aurora, Harvey, Lake Barrington, Libertyville, Naperville, Villa Park, St. Charles and more, with 12 of these fires taking place in Chicago.

Over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, volunteers with the Red Cross responded to 14 fires across the region and assisted 72 people including 17 children. 

The Red Cross provided assistance with temporary housing, food, clothing and comfort kits with toiletry items, information about recovery services and health and mental health services to 139 individuals, including 95 adults and 44 children in total. 

The American Red Cross responds to 3 to 4 home fires every day in Chicago and Northern Illinois. The Red Cross recommends two easy steps to help protect your home and loved ones from a fire: get a smoke alarm and create a fire escape plan. The Red Cross installs FREE smoke alarms year-round. To schedule an appointment to get a free installation in your home, visit www.getasmokealarm.org.

On November 27, volunteers with the Red Cross also assisted a Streator family after their home sustained storm damages after a tree collapsed on the property. Volunteer disaster responders helped the family of four with temporary housing.

In addition, our volunteers helped five adults from Sauk Village, Illinois who were displaced from their home due to a gas leak on Thanksgiving. The Red Cross provided assistance with temporary housing.                                

This December 3 is Giving Tuesday and the American Red Cross asks everyone to “give something that means something” by donating at redcross.org/gift.

On this day of giving, the American Red Cross of Chicago & Northern Illinois is teaming up with CBS Chicago for the annual CBS Chicago Cares Telethon. People can donate online at  cbschicago.com/redcross to support the lifesaving mission of the Red Cross and help those affected by disasters, including home fires, military members, veterans and their families, and more. 

You can also help people affected by disasters like storms and countless other crises by making a gift to American Red Cross Disaster Relief. Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small. Call, click, or text to give: visit redcross.org, call 1-800 RED CROSS or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. To donate by check or to a specific cause, please complete this donation form by printing and mailing to your local Red Cross chapter.  

About the American Red Cross of Chicago & Northern Illinois: 

The American Red Cross of Chicago & Northern Illinois serves 9.5 million people in 21 counties including Boone, Bureau, Carroll, Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Jo Daviess, LaSalle, Lake, Lee, McHenry, Ogle, Putnam, Stephenson, Whiteside, Will and Winnebago. 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 us at redcross.org/IL/chicago or visit us on Twitter @ChicagoRedCross.