SAAA May 2020 Special Edition Residence Magazine MAY_2020_DIGITAL_Magazine

RELIEF IN ACTION SOUTHERN TORNADOES AND FLOODS APRIL 22, 2020 Relief Efforts in the Southeast Continue Amid COVID-19 Pandemic Severe weather battered the southeastern United States again last weekend, and the American Red Cross was there to deliver vital aid, while adapting our services to ensure the safety of impacted residents and disaster workers amid the coronavirus outbreak. For the second weekend in a row, destructive storms upended lives in the South as high winds and hail tore down trees, damaged roofs and flooded roads last weekend. Just a week earlier, on April 12, more than 100 tornadoes were reported across nine states. In recent weeks, storms have damaged or destroyed nearly 800 homes in Mississippi and Alabama alone and caused similar destruction elsewhere in the South. These storms are the latest in series of severe weather events that have wreaked havoc on the southern U.S. since February. At the Red Cross, the coronavirus outbreak hasn’t stopped us from serving the communities affected by these relentless disasters—but it has meant we’ve had to adapt how we serve them. As we provide refuge for people displaced from their homes by the latest storms, the Red Cross is prioritizing individual hotel or dormitory rooms in place of open shelters. On Sunday night alone, the Red Cross—in collaboration with our hotel partners and community stakeholders—provided hotel rooms to more than 1,600 people across Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee. In addition, to ensure the health and safety of those we Charles, a Red Cross emergency management coordinator, hands masks to Kemesha at a hotel where the Red Cross is sheltering residents affected by a tornado in Monroe, Louisiana. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross serve and our volunteers, the Red Cross is largely conducting our damage assessments virtually. We’re using satellite technology, partnering with local governments and working with some volunteers on the ground to record damage and provide crucial aid to as many impacted people as possible. As of Monday, we had distributed more than 62,000 relief items to those in need since these severe storms began in February. As this unrelenting spring storm season continues, with more storms expected Thursday and into the weekend, we remain prepared to respond at a moment’s notice to disasters, delivering food, shelter, relief items and more for people in need. The generosity of our compassionate donors has allowed us to continue to stand with, both virtually and in-person, those affected by these devastating storms as they recover and rebuild their lives. How You Can Help Help people affected by tornadoes and floods in the South. Your donation enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from these disasters. To donate by check, write “Southern Tornadoes & Floods” in the memo line, and mail it to your local Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37839, Boone, IA 50037-0839. www.saaaonline.org | MAY 2020 SPECIAL EDITION 19

SAAA May 2020 Special Edition Residence Magazine MAY_2020_DIGITAL_Magazine | Page 19