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Iowa Red Cross volunteers deploy to LA area amidst wildfire flareups

News

January 14th, 2025 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – As the powerful Santa Ana winds returned to the Los Angeles area today (Tuesday), a team of Red Cross volunteers from Iowa is in southern California, helping some of the thousands of residents impacted by the wildfires to recover. Emily Holley, spokeswoman for the Red Cross’ Nebraska-Iowa region, says three Iowans are among the 350 agency volunteers and staffers who are responding to the disaster, where damage may exceed 150-billion dollars.

“The Iowans are mostly working in sheltering,” Holley says. “As of yesterday morning, 900 people woke up in Red Cross shelters. These are folks who have evacuated due to the fires, and so the Iowans are going to help support the workings of those shelters.” At least two dozen people died in the fires and some 12-thousand structures were lost, as tens of thousands of L-A area residents fled their homes, many seeking refuge in shelters.

Holley says Red Cross volunteers are well trained in a wide scope of skills — from preparing meals for hundreds to addressing survivors’ mental health. “When we are supporting our shelters, we have folks that are in charge of feeding, we have folks that are in charge of the inner workings of the shelter,” Holley says. “We have folks that are sitting down with those who’ve been affected and just listening to them and making them feel heard and supported.”

American Red Cross image

In recent months, the state’s Red Cross volunteers have responded to historic flooding and tornadoes in Iowa, and they’ve also been deployed to states from Florida to North Carolina that saw significant hurricane damage.

“We want to make sure that folks know that they are not going through this alone,” she says, “that the Red Cross is there with them.” Iowans who’d like to help can make a donation by visiting RedCross.org or by calling 1-800-Red Cross.