Connecticut Volunteers Head to Texas to Help During Hurricane Harvey

Volunteers from the American Red Cross and Stamford-based Americares have been sent to Texas to help as Hurricane Harvey, now a Category 3 storm, approaches.

Save the Children, a Fairfield based organization has also sent members to Texas. The group will be providing supplies to families at shelters to make them feel more like home. Those items include cribs, changing tables, diapers and play places for children.

The Red Cross has sent five people from Connecticut to Texas.

The National Hurricane Center is predicting that Harvey will make landfall along the Gulf Coast Friday night and becomes the first hurricane to strike Texas in almost several years.

The Red Cross said it is mobilizing trained Red Cross disaster relief workers to support the response effort and has more than 17 shelters ready to open and support thousands of people if needed.

Another dozen or more Red Cross volunteers are expected to travel to Texas after the hurricane makes landfall to provide relief.

Americares said it has been in contact with its network of local health centers, free clinics and response partners in Texas and is already responding to requests for water and medications.

Connecticut’s division of the National Disaster Medical System is also in Texas to help.

New Britain resident, Dave Cruickshank, is a member and will serve as the police chief. It’s something familiar to the 10-year Berlin Police officer, who is part of the command staff to a team of 47 people that will provide medical attention for anyone who needs it.

“We go and we set up field hospitals and we have the ability to replace hospitals that are damaged or without power or flooded,” he said.

The team has everything they need to staff a hospital for 24 hours a day for two weeks.

At this time, it’s unclear where they will be stationed.

To make a donation to the Red Cross, visit redcross.org, call 1-800-RED CROSS or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

Donations to the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund will support Americares response to the storm. To make a donation, go to americares.org/Harvey.

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