Each year, Red Cross paid and volunteer staff respond to more than
67,000 disasters ranging from single-family house fires to major disasters
such as hurricanes, floods, and tornados. That is an average of 1 disaster
every eight minutes. We help hundreds of thousands of our neighbors by
providing food, clothing, shelter, and other emergency needs free of charge.
Disasters strike in Blount County...whether it affects the entire community,
a neighborhood, or a single family. Your local Red Cross chapter has been
there to help fellow residents of Blount County in their times of need.
A
well-qualified and dedicated group of volunteers make up the Disaster Action
Team, (DAT Team) to respond to emergencies. The DAT Team stays busy with
disaster preparation and training.
These courses in turn help make our communities healthier, safer
places to live. Red Cross chapters provide instructors for the workplace to
teach employees these and other Red Cross courses.
Red Cross Health and Safety workers in the community may also offer-
Red Cross first aid stations at public events.
Red Cross home health care courses.
Red Cross home health aide training.
Red Cross training for child care providers.
Know how to prepare your family for any emergency with these
Health & Safety Tips.
More than 90 percent of all Red Cross Chapters have
young people, ages 5-18, involved in Red Cross activities. These
activities include-
Health and safety programs in
school including Basic Aid Training (BAT) and First Aid for Children Today
(FACT).
International
activities that include preparing kits and school chests for youth in
developing countries and participating in a cultural exchange program.
Programs to assist the elderly, such as nursing home
visits and delivering meals to the homebound.
Red Cross paid and volunteer staff provide emergency-related services to
members of the U.S. armed forces, reservists, recruiters, veterans, their
families, and civilians.
Some of these services include-
Making our Red Cross around-the-clock, around-the-world
emergency communication network available to the men and women of our armed
forces and their families during times of personal emergencies. This service
operates 24 hours a day, every day of the year, at no cost to service
personnel or their families.
The Red Cross can provide military personnel with fast and
reliable information to help make decisions regarding emergency leaves,
deferments, compassionate reassignments, and dependency discharges.
Providing military members and their families interest-free
loans and grants, if needed, when urgent personal crisis arise, such as a
death in the family.
Assisting veterans during discharge procedures and helping
them complete forms for military benefits.
Offering counseling and other social services to military
families such as health and safety training and volunteer opportunities.
