Florida

A dozen Conn. volunteers go to Florida to help with Hurricane Idalia aftermath

A total of 12 American Red Cross volunteers from Connecticut will be in Florida to help with disaster relief efforts following Hurricane Idalia.

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Hurricane Idalia made landfall Wednesday morning in Florida’s Big Bend region. The Category 3 storm brought strong winds and dangerous storm surge.

Mudit Rungtha, a volunteer with the American Red Cross in Connecticut, was on the ground ready to help with emergency relief efforts.

On Wednesday he was in Lake City, Florida to begin a 14-day deployment.

“No recovery or disaster is the same as before so kind of expect the unexpected, we don’t know who is going to walk in through that door, what they might require,” volunteer Mudit Rungtha said.

Rungtha is stationed at a community center where people can stop by for medical assistance, food or shelter.

“Yeah, so we have been helping people settle down, water, etc., we have a generator so people can charge their phone, kind of stay safe,” Rungtha said.

The Stamford resident is one of seven volunteers currently in Florida helping with disaster relief. The nonprofit organization said five more volunteers are on their way.

Gov. Ned Lamont pledged support for those impacted by Idalia.

“Our emergency operations team are in regular contact with Florida, any request they have, we are ready to stand in,” Lamont said.

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