Red Cross Continues Large Hurricane Sandy Relief Operation

Millions awoke Wednesday morning to power outages, fallen trees, scattered debris, and flooded neighborhoods. The American Red Cross is continuing its relief operations throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast to shelter and assist people affected by Superstorm Hurricane Sandy.

Nearly 11,000 people spent Monday night in more than 250 Red Cross shelters across 16 states including New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Indiana, and Michigan. These numbers could increase as the storm moves into cities like Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit and Milwaukee with heavy wind, rain and snow.

"Our first priority is to get people the help they need - providing families and individuals with a safe place to stay and food to eat," said Charley Shimanski, senior vice president of Disaster Services for the Red Cross. "While it is too early to know the full extent of Sandy's damage, we expect to be working with a variety of partners to help people for the next several weeks."

The Red Cross has mobilized 1,700 disaster workers from all over the country who have served more than 25,000 meals and snacks so far. It has also activated 167 response vehicles and shipped more than 230,000 ready-to-eat meals. Red Cross is working closely with multiple partners including a variety of civic groups, advocacy organizations, professional organizations and houses of worship to share their expertise and volunteers.

Red Cross introduced an application "Red Cross Hurricane app" that will let people know their loved ones how they are by using the "I'm Safe" button on the app.

"With more than 7 million people without power as of Tuesday morning, residents should take precautions to ensure the safety of themselves and their loved ones. For those without power, surround food with ice in a cooler or refrigerator to keep food cold for a longer period of time and keep the refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible," the Red Cross advisory said. "Use flashlights, not candles. Residents should also turn off and unplug all unnecessary electrical equipment and any appliances, equipment or electronics that were on when the power went out to avoid damaging them when the power is restored. Finally, eliminate unnecessary travel, especially by car as traffic lights will be out and roads congested."