Red Cross provides critical help to those displaced by the Park Fire

Taylor Poisall, with the American Red Cross, explains how they're helping wildfire evacuees.

Transcript

00:00The Park Fire, which is now the fifth largest wildfire in modern California history, has been

00:05burning. And the American Red Cross is, to no surprise, there on the ground to provide help.

00:10They do a lot of good things when people are in need, and this is yet another case. So Taylor

00:13Poiseuille is national spokesperson for the American Red Cross. Taylor, thanks so much for

00:18making time for us yet again. Thank you for having us on to share about the great work our Red Cross

00:23volunteers are doing. Well, we understand that they are busy, and I know that you're a little

00:28removed geographically, but you're still in California in Fresno, so you're well connected

00:33with what's going on just to your north. How is the American Red Cross helping during the Park

00:38Fire, and did many evacuations need shelter? Our hearts go out to the communities who are

00:44once again impacted by wildfires in their area. Up in the north, with residents affected by the Park

00:51Fire, Red Cross has three shelters open caring for almost 100 people who have been displaced from

00:57their homes, and a lot of them have been displaced again. This is a familiar feeling,

01:03unfortunately, as they are evacuated from another devastating wildfire, and the Red Cross is there

01:09to provide comfort, care, shelter, and emotional support during this tragic time. And with smoke

01:16and dangerous air quality, there are a lot of different needs here. So are the relief needs

01:21different when you're helping wildfire victims compared to, say, after a hurricane?

01:27Wildfires are a little bit different because they keep people away from their homes for longer

01:32amounts of time. You have to evacuate from your home for safety. You have to wait for those

01:37evacuation orders to downgrade. We're seeing some evacuations change here and there with the fire

01:45in northern California for the Park Fire, which is a good sign. That means that firefighters are

01:50getting containment of the fire, and it helps residents be able to begin their recovery.

01:56With a hurricane, sometimes you are able to go home a little more quickly, or at least to be

02:01able to begin your recovery faster. And what is next? What kinds of help will the Red Cross

02:07be providing into the weekend? Right now, we're focused on making sure that everyone's physical

02:13and emotional needs are being met. We have Red Cross nurses who are there in our shelters

02:19for people who may have left with the clothes they had on their backs, making sure that they

02:23have medications and medical equipment replaced as they're evacuated from their home. And we also

02:29have caseworkers who are going to be meeting with each individual to see what their next steps are,

02:34what kind of support they need, and how we can connect them to our network of partners to begin

02:39to recover. And if anybody wants to help, the financial contributions can be sent via texting

02:45to 90999, or you can certainly go to the American Red Cross' website, and there are many options

02:50there. Taylor Poisson with the American Red Cross, thanks again for joining us. Thank you.