TERRE HAUTE —
American Red Cross volunteer Wendy Taylor knew a telephone call asking for help could come at any time.
That call came about 9 a.m. Thursday for Taylor and fellow Red Cross volunteer Janice Hawkins to board a plane early this morning in Indianapolis en route to Tampa, Fla. The two Terre Haute volunteers are assigned to prepare shelters for possible evacuees from a tropical storm or hurricane.
As delegates for the 2012 Republican National Convention prepare to meet for four days, beginning Monday, in Tampa, the Red Cross is pre-positioning numerous emergency response vehicles and volunteers to respond to Tropical Storm Isaac, a nasty storm meteorologists predict will reach hurricane status. Isaac could swing toward Tampa, or track east along the Florida Peninsula.
“This is my first deployment,” said Taylor, who joined the American Red Cross in March 2011. “We will call for our orders as soon as we land in Tampa. I am very excited. We plan on being gone for three weeks. It will be interesting to see what my family thinks when I return. I am blessed that I am able to help and my family is supportive of me helping,” Taylor said.
Taylor has two daughters attending Indiana State University and another who is a student at Terre Haute North Vigo High School. Her husband, Jim Taylor, is already in Florida on a business trip, but he expects to return today.
Both Taylor and Hawkins are taking bed sheets and a pillow, as each expects to sleep on a cot for the entire time.
It is the fourth time Hawkins has deployed with the Red Cross. “Always before, I have gone in an ERV (Emergency Response Vehicle). This will be a new experience for me for national sheltering,” Hawkins said, who joined the Red Cross in 2005.
At the shelters, Hawkins and Taylor will counsel people, find necessities that are needed, help to feed evacuees and watch over children who may have been separated from their family. “There is a wide variety of hats that we will be wearing,” Hawkins said. “We are going expecting to work long hours.”
Taylor is prepared with the Red Cross’ latest device, a free Red Cross Hurricane app, which puts real time information on hurricane safety in hand on her cellular phone. The app can be downloaded by searching the American Red Cross in the Google Play Store or Apple App Store.
Two additional local Red Cross volunteers — Brandy Clark and Don Gorrell — will leave this morning from the Red Cross office, 700 S. Third St., in an ERV bound for Orlando, Fla.
Gorrell, a resident of Mecca in Parke County, has previously delivered mobile trailers for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He joined the American Red Cross this past December.
“I know what to expect when we get there,” Gorrell said, adding it will take 15 to 16 hours of driving to get to Orlando. “It will be my first time for the Red Cross. I know there will be a lot of work, but I help out here and in my home community.
“My wife (Jinnie) wanted to go, but could not get away from work. We both do a lot of volunteer work,” Gorrell said.
Carol Stevens, executive director of the Wabash Valley Chapter, said the “Red Cross is moving hundreds of trained disaster workers to Florida and is preparing to open dozens of shelters across the state, if needed. Red Cross disaster warehouses in Georgia and Mississippi are ready to ship additional emergency supplies, if necessary.
“Our volunteers train for these types of emergencies and are prepared to respond to the need of others,” Stevens said.
Reporter Howard Greninger can be reached at (812) 231-4204 or howard.greninger@
tribstar.com
Local & Bistate
Related Photos
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Checking the list: Red Cross volunteers Betty Moote and Jim Legg go through a checklist before heading to Florida to help with relief efforts should Tropical Storm Isaac create the need.
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Paperwork: Red Cross volunteers Wendy Taylor and Janice Hawkins fill out paperwork for their trip to the Tampa, Fla., area. They’ll provide manpower in the event Tropical Storm Isaac creates the need.
Discussion
Red Cross prepares for storm relief
Wabash Valley volunteers get deployment calls
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