Two MH residents go to Alabama to help tornado victims

Among the 13 local disaster volunteers from the American Red
Cross Silicon Valley Chapter are Scott Ilse and Tom Tanner of
Morgan Hill. Both men flew to Birmingham, Ala. last week for a
14-day volunteer effort to help the thousands of people displaced
by a spate of treacherous tornadoes in the Midwest and South.
Among the 13 local disaster volunteers from the American Red Cross Silicon Valley Chapter are Scott Ilse and Tom Tanner of Morgan Hill. Both men flew to Birmingham, Ala. last week for a 14-day volunteer effort to help the thousands of people displaced by a spate of treacherous tornados in the Midwest and South.

It’s the first deployment for Ilse and the second for Tanner, who called last week from Alabama. In 2005, he spent 10 days volunteering at the site of Hurricane Katrina. The Morgan Hill residents are working logistics for the Red Cross, or “getting supplies that need to be secured, then gotten, then delivered,” Tanner said.

Tanner had only been in south Birmingham a few hours and had yet to see the devastation, but his two weeks will be busy distributing supplies and ensuring they are delivered. He said the Red Cross aims to fill volunteer positions closest to the disaster site, but gradually looks further and further away for volunteers.

“I think it’s just the right thing to do. My grandma was a volunteer with the Red Cross and I guess it rubbed off on me,” Tanner said.

Tanner said the operation is “huge” though hard to compare to Katrina in volunteers and scope; “Katrina was very big,” he said.

These Silicon Valley volunteers join hundreds of others, consisting of four chapters – Bay Area Chapter, Monterey Bay Area Chapter, Santa Cruz County Chapter and Silicon Valley Chapter, responding to help those affect recover from this disaster.   

As members of the American Red Cross Disaster Services Human Resources System, these local residents are ready to leave home on short notice (within 24 hours) for three-week assignments on large-scale disaster relief operations anywhere in the country.

Red Cross volunteers are highly trained through local Red Cross Chapters in a specialized area of disaster relief, and many have extensive experience in Red Cross disaster relief operations in local communities and throughout the United States.  

The top priority in helping tornado victims is to provide food, shelter and relief supplies to the thousands of people affected by these storms. More than 980 people spent the night of May 1 in Red Cross shelters in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Missouri, Mississippi, Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina and Virginia. 

More than 120 Red Cross emergency response vehicles are distributing meals across seven states. Toiletries and clean-up supplies are also being given out. Kitchens are being set up with organizations such as the Salvation Army and Southern Baptist Convention to prepare meals to hand out in the affected neighborhoods. More than 513,000 meals and snacks have been distributed since March 31. 

The Red Cross has sent in more than 130,000 ready-to-eat meals and thousands of supplies like blankets, toiletries, gloves, rakes, tarps and shovels. We are also moving items for persons with access and functional needs, such as universal cots, shower chairs and commode risers. Since the beginning of April, more than 3,700 Red Cross workers have assisted with relief and recovery efforts in 16 states on 20 separate relief operations.

The Red Cross depends on financial donations to help in times of disaster. They ask people to consider making a donation to help the thousands of people who have been affected by these disasters by visiting www.siliconvalley-redcross.org. Or you can text the word “REDCROSS” to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Contributions may also be sent to the American Red Cross Silicon Valley Chapter at 2731 North First Street, San Jose, CA 95134 or to your local Chapter. 

Become a volunteer

American Red Cross volunteers undergo special training to provide them with the ability to safely and efficiently provide relief services. If you are interested in becoming a Red Cross volunteer to help in future disaster, you may fill out a volunteer application online at www.siliconvalley-redcross.org.