Texas Water Woes Continue – Red Cross Helping

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The Red Cross moves water donated by Anheuser-Busch onto a truck for the Houston Food Bank, a community partner of the American Red Cross, at the Red Cross headquarters in Houston, TX. Water was also going to the Galveston County Food Bank, another Red Cross community partner. The food banks are part of the nationwide Feeding America network. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton.

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American Red Cross volunteer Jon Strohbehn helps to move water donated by Anheuser-Busch at the Red Cross headquarters in Houston, TX to a truck for MIRA USA. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton.

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Red Cross volunteer Maria Isabel Scott helps Annie White, who was suffering cluster headaches, at a Red Cross shelter, in Houston, TX. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

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Red Cross volunteer Jessica Farias Zanette speaks with L.A. Tyner who is staying at a Red Cross shelter, in Houston, TX, after losing power in his apartment. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

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Red Cross volunteers Maria Isabel Scott (left) and Chance Vogel hand out meals at a Red Cross shelter, in Houston, TX. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

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Red Cross volunteer Audrey Nguyen speaks with Annie White at a Red Cross shelter, in Houston, TX. Ms. White lost power and had pipes burst in her apartment in southwest Houston, so she came to the Red Cross shelter for a warm, dry place to sleep. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

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The Red Cross provides meals at a shelter in Houston, TX. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

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Ezinne Nwamadi passes the time playing guitar at a Red Cross shelter in Houston, TX. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

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Anthony Ray Zachary is staying at a Red Cross shelter, in Houston, TX after he lost power and pipes burst in his apartment in southwest Houston. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

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Red Cross volunteer Chance Vogel checks on Princess Robinson who is staying at a Red Cross shelter in Houston, TX. Ms. Robinson lost the electricity in her apartment and came to the shelter for a warm place to sleep. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

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Anthony Willis and his dog Kissy take shelter from the cold at the George R. Brown Convention Center, in Houston, TX. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

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Deondre, age 6, and Jayden, age 5, with their grandmother Joyce Wallace are all escaping the winter storm and power outage at a Red Cross shelter, in Houston, TX. Red Cross photo by Scott Dalton

February 26, 2021

The American Red Cross and our partners continue to help people recover and have access to safe water after the recent winter storms. More than 17,600 households remain without power in Texas and West Virginia and more than a million people in Texas are still under water boil advisories more than a week after the devastating storms.

Thousands of additional Texans are still without running water due to water main breaks, mechanical failures, frozen or broken water lines or other issues. Many schools and businesses remain closed due to storm damage, especially broken water pipes.

To support recovery, the federal government is providing disaster assistance in 100 Texas counties. This could include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help people recover from last week’s winter storm. Apply online for FEMA assistance at DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients in Texas may also apply for replacement benefits for food lost or destroyed by dialing 211.

RED CROSS RESPONSE The Red Cross is working with government and community partners to coordinate food and water distribution to where it is most needed.

Many organizations who specialize in distributing water are at work in the affected communities. When possible, we are also helping to connect partners who want to make water donations with communities in need of those resources. The Red Cross is also providing water for people at the emergency shelters we are managing and supporting. If you need water and are not currently sheltering with the Red Cross, please call 211 or reach out to your local county or city officials for locations of water distribution sites in your community.

Almost 8,000 people have stayed overnight in shelters since the February winter storms began. All Red Cross-supported shelters have COVID-19 safety protocols in place. This includes conducting a health screening process for everyone coming into the shelter, providing masks, ensuring additional space between cots, and using enhanced cleaning and disinfecting practices.

More than 300 Red Cross disaster workers have helped to provide shelter, more than 111,000 meals and snacks and some 24,400 emergency supplies, including kits to help people clean up after pipes burst in their homes. Red Cross workers have also provided nearly 2,200 individual care contacts to help people with medical or disability needs, or to provide emotional and spiritual support.

Visit redcross.org/shelter, download the free Red Cross Emergency app or call 211 to find a safe location near you.

WATER SAFETY If your community is under a boil advisory, you should boil water before drinking it or using it to wash your hands or face, brush your teeth, prepare food, wash dishes or make ice. To boil water for drinking and other uses, first use a coffee filter or a layer of clean cloth to strain your water. Next, in a large pot or kettle, bring water to a rolling boil for one full minute. Boiled water will taste better if you put oxygen back into it by pouring the water back and forth between two clean containers.

PLEASE GIVE BLOOD Extreme winter weather throughout much of the country has exacerbated the impact COVID-19 has had on Red Cross blood and platelet donations. Each February, the Red Cross anticipates that we will lose 4-5% of our expected blood donations due to winter weather. However, this February, blood donation losses have doubled following severe snow and ice across much of the country with 9-10% of expected blood donations going uncollected due to canceled blood drives. As the weather improves, its vital that eligible individuals come out to give blood and platelets to help restock the shelves—especially those with type O blood—to ensure patients have continued access to the treatments they need during this critical time.

Donation appointments can be made for the coming days and weeks by downloading the free Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or enabling the Blood Donor Skill on any Alexa Echo device.

YOUR DONATION WILL SUPPORT PEOPLE IN NEED The Red Cross works 24/7 to be ready to respond to disasters like storms and other countless crises. Please donate today to help. Every single donation will make a difference in someone’s life. 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.

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.; Marathon Petroleum Foundation, Inc.; Microsoft Corp.; Nationwide Foundation; State Farm; Truist Foundation; UPS; 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; Discover; Edison International; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Ford Motor Company; Fox Corporation; General Motors; HCA Healthcare; IBM Corporation; International Paper; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; The Kroger Co. Foundation; LHC Group; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; Merck Foundation; Mondelēz International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; PayPal; PepsiCo Foundation; Progressive Insurance; Salesforce; Sands Cares; Southwest Airlines; Southeastern Grocers Home of BI-LO, Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie; The Starbucks Foundation; Takeda Pharmaceutical; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; The USAA Foundation, Inc.; Visa Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; and The Wawa Foundation.

Disaster Responder Program members are: 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe; American Express; Assurant; AT&T; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; Avangrid Foundation; The Ball Foundation; Barclays; CarMax; Choice Hotels International; Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; The Coca-Cola Company; Consumer Cellular; CSX; Darden Foundation; DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation; Dominion Energy; Duke Energy; Equitable; Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation; FirstEnergy Foundation; Grainger; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation, LLC; Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation; HP Foundation; Humble Bundle; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; The Kraft Heinz Company Foundation; Lenovo; Liberty Mutual Insurance; Mastercard; 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; Ryder System, Inc.; San Manuel Band of Mission Indians; Security Finance’s Lending Hand Foundation; Tata Consultancy Services; TD Ameritrade; Trane Technologies Charitable Foundation; U-Haul International; and U.S. Bank Foundation.

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or follow us on social media.