Red Cross Responds as Henri Hits New England

As the flood waters recede in the wake of Tropical Storm Henri, people are beginning the difficult task of cleaning up their homes and neighborhoods. The American Red Cross is there, working closely with officials and partners to make sure people get the help they need.

Henri, now a tropical depression, will bring heavy rain and flooding today to southern New England and parts of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania with more than 3 inches of rain possible in some areas.

As the storm made landfall Sunday in Rhode Island, it left thousands of people without power and caused flooding across several states. Today more than 61,000 customers are still without power in Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

With the threat of more rain today, we urge everyone to listen to local officials and evacuate immediately if asked. We encourage safety and staying out of harm’s way above all.

Download the free Red Cross Emergency app for access to shelter locations, real-time information and safety tips.

RED CROSS RESPONSE To help people across the Northeast affected by Henri, the Red Cross is focused on providing people with a safe place to stay, food to eat, emotional support and health services.

Most of the emergency shelters opened last night in Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York will be closing today. But more shelters are ready to open if needed. The Red Cross is working with local emergency officials and community organizations to assess the damage left behind by Henri and develop plans to help people recover

In some of the hardest hit areas, the Red Cross will be distributing emergency supplies such as cleanup kits and tarps as soon as it is safe to do so. Responding to disasters is a team effort and no single organization can do it alone — particularly in this current environment.

YOU CAN HELP PEOPLE affected by disasters like storms and countless other crises by making a gift to Red Cross Disaster Relief. Your gift is a commitment to helping people in need, and every single donation matters. Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small. Visit redcross.org, call 800-RED-CROSS, or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

FLOODING SAFETY

• Turn around, don’t drown! Stay off the roads. If you must drive and you encounter a flooded roadway, turn around and go another way.
  
• Follow evacuation routes and do not try to take shortcuts because they may be blocked.
  
• If you are staying home, decide your best protection for high winds and flooding. Take shelter in a designated storm shelter or an interior room for high winds.
  
• Stay away from glass windows and doors.
  
• If you live in an area prone to flooding, move to higher ground before flooding begins.
  
• Tune into your local radio, NOAA radio or news channels for the latest updates.
  
• Stay away from floodwaters. Beware of snakes, insects and other animals that may be in or around floodwaters and your home.
  
• Keep children and pets away from hazardous sites and floodwaters.
  
• If power lines are down, don’t step in puddles or standing water.

POWER OUTAGE SAFETY

• Use flashlights in the dark — not candles.
  
• Eliminate unnecessary travel, especially by car. Traffic lights will be out and roads will likely be congested.
  
• Turn off and unplug all unnecessary electrical equipment and appliances. When power comes back on, surges or spikes can damage equipment.
  
• Leave one light on, so you’ll know when power is restored.
  
• Never use a generator, grill, camp stove or other gasoline, propane, natural gas or charcoal-burning devices inside a home, garage, basement, crawlspace or any partially enclosed area. Keep these devices outside away from doors, windows and vents, which could allow carbon monoxide to come indoors. Full generator safety information is available here.
  
• During a prolonged outage, keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to protect your food.
  
  • Use perishable food from the refrigerator first, then, food from the freezer.
    
  • If the power outage continues beyond a day, prepare a cooler with ice for your freezer items. Keep food in a dry, cool spot and cover it at all times.

SAFE SHELTER Anyone who needs a safe place to go can find information for open Red Cross shelters on redcross.org, 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or the free Red Cross Emergency app. Download the app by searching “American Red Cross” in your app store or by going to redcross.org/apps

COVID-19 has not changed the Red Cross mission. We are helping families in the same way we always have — and ensuring people have a safe place to stay during disasters is a critical part of that support. How we support sheltering efforts may be different in each community, depending on local emergency plans and the scale of the disaster.  

In most cases, we plan to open group shelters for people evacuating in the face of tropical storms. To help keep everybody safe, everyone in Red Cross emergency shelters is required to wear face coverings. In addition, we’re using health screenings, enhanced cleaning procedures and encouraging social distancing as much as possible.

We encourage people who plan to stay in a Red Cross shelter to bring prescription medications, extra clothing, pillows, blankets, hygiene supplies, other comfort items and important documents. Don’t forget to bring any special items for children, such as diapers, formula and toys, or for family members who have unique needs.

CORPORATIONS, FOUNDATIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS HELP  The generous donations from members of the Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and the Disaster Responder Program enable the American Red Cross to prepare communities for disasters big and small, respond whenever and wherever disasters occur and help families during the recovery process.

ADGP $1 Million members are: Amazon; American Airlines; Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Anthem Foundation; Bank of America; Caterpillar Foundation; Costco Wholesale; Delta Air Lines; Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation; FedEx; The Home Depot Foundation; Latter-day Saint Charities; Lilly Endowment Inc.; Microsoft Corp.; Nationwide Foundation; State Farm; Truist Foundation; VSP Global; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; and Wells Fargo.

ADGP $500,000 members are: Altria Group; Aon; Capital One; Citi Foundation; The Clorox Company; The Coca-Cola Foundation; Delta Dental Community Care Foundation; Edison International; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Ford Motor Company; Fox Corporation; General Motors; HCA Healthcare; International Paper; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; The Kroger Co. Foundation; LHC Group; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; Mastercard; Merck Foundation; Mondelēz International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; PayPal; PepsiCo Foundation; Salesforce; Southeastern Grocers Home of Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie; Stanley Black & Decker; The Starbucks Foundation; Takeda Pharmaceutical; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; UPS; The USAA Foundation, Inc.; Visa Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; and The Wawa Foundation.

Disaster Responder Program members are: 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe; Alliance Data; American Express; Ameriprise Financial, Inc.; Assurant; AT&T; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; Avangrid Foundation; The Ball Foundation; Barclays; Big 5 Sporting Goods; CarMax; Choice Hotels International; Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; The Coca-Cola Company; CSX; Darden Foundation; The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation; Discover; Duke Energy; Equitable; FirstEnergy Foundation; Grainger; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation, LLC; Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation; HP Foundation; Humble Bundle; Kaiser Permanente; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; The Kraft Heinz Company Foundation; Lenovo; Liberty Mutual Insurance; Marathon Petroleum Foundation, Inc.; NextEra Energy, Inc.; Northrop Grumman; Northwestern Mutual and the Northwestern Mutual Foundation; Old Dominion Freight Line; Procter & Gamble; Prudential Financial; Raytheon Technologies; Rodan + Fields Prescription for Change Foundation; Ross Stores Foundation; Ryder System, Inc.; San Manuel Band of Mission Indians; Security Finance’s Lending Hand Foundation; Southwest Airlines; U-Haul International; and U.S. Bank Foundation.