Red Cross Volunteers Respond to 28 Fires in the
Past Week
December 9, 2019- Volunteer disaster responders with the American Red Cross of Chicago & Northern Illinois responded to 28 fires from Monday, December 2 through today in the Chicago & Northern Illinois area
including fires in Oak Park, Dolton, Matteson, Joliet, Bellwood and more, with 13 of these fires taking place in Chicago.
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 172 individuals,
including 116 adults and 57 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 Saturday, December 7, volunteers with the Red
Cross also assisted 2 Chicago Sound Side families after a fire damaged 2 buildings in the 8600 block of S Sangamon Street. Volunteers assisted the 5
adults and 1 child with finding housing, immediate needs and mental health support.
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.
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