“This is where it all starts,” said Red Cross volunteer Gary Alicandro, looking over the pallets of relief supplies at the Red Cross supply depot in Greenville. 

Countless truckloads of much-needed supplies have left that depot over the past two weeks, delivering essential items to help local people impacted by Hurricane Helene. Each day begins before the sun rises, and a flurry of activity continues well into the evening. 

On a recent afternoon, Red Cross volunteer forklift driver Ned Worman arranged pallets of sleeping bags, bottled water, generators, water purification tablets, blankets and other relief supplies to be loaded onto trucks headed for areas in the North Carolina mountains that were utterly devastated by the storm. 

“Our [truck] drivers are so committed to fulfilling the needs in local communities,” said Alicandro, who is deployed to South Carolina from Massachusetts. “All the planning, all the logistics and answers to the question, ‘what do they need?’ ends here. It’s the terminal end of a complex operation ... my satisfaction comes from loading what’s needed as fast as possible to be sent out.” 

YOU CAN HELP: People affected by disasters need urgent help now, and we can’t do this alone. You can help by making a financial donation, an appointment to give blood or platelets, or signing up to become a volunteer by visiting redcross.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767).