Yuma Red Cross volunteers aiding Texans

6 from area deployed to assist Hurricane Harvey recovery efforts

Three Red Cross volunteers from Yuma traveled to Texas over the weekend to help in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, and two more were expected to leave on Monday and another Tuesday, making it the most volunteers ever deployed from the Yuma area.

“According to our records, several volunteers have deployed for past disasters, but never this many at once,” said Red Cross of Yuma County spokesperson Charly McMurdie.

McMurdie said the volunteers are part of a massive relief effort currently underway by the Red Cross to provide shelter and food to residents affected by the storm’s destruction.

In all, 30 staff and volunteers from the Red Cross Arizona, New Mexico and the El Paso Region have been deployed in response to assist in recovery efforts, with 23 being from Arizona, five from New Mexico and two from Texas.

The first of the Yuma volunteers actually left for Texas on Friday in anticipation of the storm making landfall, according to McMurdie.

The volunteer was supposed to drive a Red Cross Emergency Vehicle to some of the outlying areas, but due to the flooding wasn’t able to do so. The volunteer is now working out of the agency’s Houston headquarters.

“Those vehicles are equipped with food, cots, hygiene items and

any other resources needed,” McMurdie said.

McMurdie said two volunteers also left on Sunday, but were only able to make it as far as San Antonio, where they are now working with the Red Cross there to put up shelters and helping out in any other way they can.

As for the two volunteers who left on Monday, one is going to Louisiana, which has declared a state of emergency, while the other went to San Antonio. Both are expected to work shelters and assist in the feeding of those who come seeking refuge.

As of now it is unclear where the final volunteer will be stationed.

A typical Red Cross deployment lasts for about 15 days, with McMurdie saying this one could be for as long as 30 days.

“Usually it is only two weeks, but a lot of times volunteers are given the option of staying longer,” McMurdie said.

To make a donation to the Red Cross, visit redcross.org, call 1-800-RED CROSS or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

McMurdie said it is possible that more volunteers from Yuma could also be sent, provided they are available.

Harvey is the fiercest hurricane to hit the U.S. in 13 years and the strongest to strike Texas since 1961’s Hurricane Carla, the most powerful Texas hurricane on record. More than 30 inches of rain have fallen on parts of the Houston area since Thursday, the National Weather Service reported Monday.