Dear Friends:
It’s been an extremely busy week for the American Red Cross and your Greater Los Angeles Chapter. The Station fire started last Wednesday and was quickly followed by the fire in Palos Verdes Peninsula and a number of other threatening fires throughout our state.
We have been on the scene since the beginning and opened our first shelter last Thursday. The Greater Los Angeles Chapter’s Emergency Operations Center was activated and is serving as the Red Cross central communications hub for California to coordinate the deployment of mass care to the evacuees of all of the fires in the state. Since last week and in response to the Station wildfire: seven shelters were opened; close to 500 people received shelter, including 155 with physical and mental challenges; and almost 5,000 meals and snacks were served. These wildfires have challenged our resources but I am very pleased to report that our response efforts have been strong and effective.
Individuals and their families have quickly received shelter, food, comfort, support and assistance from our trained disaster service workers. As the fire shifted, we were able to quickly open new shelters, provide staffing, and deploy resources to the site including Red Cross disaster mental health workers, food, water, comfort kits, cots, blankets and other emergency items.
Our Emergency Operations Center is operating seamlessly and to capacity with almost all of the 40 stations in use. The photo (left) was taken during the middle of our response effort.
As the chapter’s chief executive officer and a trained disaster services worker, I could not be more proud of the Red Cross and the volunteers and staff involved in this massive response effort. I have been on the scene and have visited the shelters and evacuation sites and everything that can be done, is being done, to assist the evacuees.
I wanted to share the good news that your past financial support is at work. The chapter’s ability to respond during these tragic events and provide the mass care needed would not have been possible without the generous support from our community. Thank you!
Sincerely,
Paul Schulz, Chief Executive Officer
