Volunteer disaster responders with the American Red Cross of Chicago & Northern Illinois responded to 18 fires from Monday, October 7 to today across the region including fires in Dolton, Harvard, Blue Island, Waukegan, Dixon, Maywood, Harvey and more with eight of these fires occurring in Chicago.
The Red Cross assisted 85 individuals, including 59 adults and 26 children with temporary housing, food, clothing and comfort kits with toiletry items, information about recovery services and health and mental health services and, depending on the circumstances, financial assistance.
The American Red Cross responds to 3 to 4 home fires every day in 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 all year-round. To schedule an appointment to get a free installation in your home, visit www.getasmokealarm.org. On Saturday, October 26, volunteers with the American Red Cross will be installing free smoke alarms in Machesney Park, Illinois. Make your appointment today! For more Red Cross fire safety and preparedness information visit www.redcross.org/prepare.
Also, on Thursday, October 10, volunteers with the Red Cross helped one person who was displaced after a car drove into their mobile home located in the 3200 block of 9th Street in Rockford. The American Red Cross provided financial assistance, temporary housing and a comfort kit that included toiletry items.
In addition, over 100 people including several international runners took on the 2019 Bank of America Chicago Marathon as Team Red Cross on Sunday. American Red Cross volunteers were also stationed along the marathon’s route to help with Runner Reunification, connecting family and friends with runners in the event a participant had been transported to a local hospital. Read more about Runner Reunification here.
HOW YOU CAN HELP You can 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.