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 The American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter announced an initiative Wednesday designed to raise emergency and disaster preparedness levels in the next five years.
Prepare Greater St. Louis tackles personal preparedness and Red Cross readiness. Included in the plan is the recruitment of at least 400 more Red Cross disaster volunteers.
“The Prepare Greater St. Louis initiative will require the cooperation of the entire community,” said Louis T. Maull IV, chairman of the Chapter’s board of directors. “Volunteers are at the heart of the Red Cross’ ability to respond to any disaster.”
September is National Preparedness Month, as designated by the Department of Homeland Security. The importance of preparedness was underscored by a recent Red Cross/Wirthlin Worldwide national poll that showed only one in five Americans feels prepared for a catastrophic event.
The Prepare Greater St. Louis campaign expands on the Red Cross’ five steps of its Together We Prepare initiative: make a plan, build a kit, get trained, volunteer, and give blood. The Red Cross is implementing online CPR and first-aid courses and is providing new, ready-made emergency supply kits.
The Chapter hopes to expand its roster of highly trained disaster volunteers from 89 to 195 in the next five years, while increasing the number of families it can serve in a disaster from 75 to 600. And instead of capping at $50,000 for relief efforts, the Chapter will be able to provide disaster relief operations up to $250,000.
“Preparedness is the key to responding to both natural and man-made disasters,” said Jerry Uhlmann, director of Missouri’s State Emergency Management Agency. “Communities and citizens who take preparedness seriously will be able to cope with the ice storms, flooding, tornadoes and severe storms that hit Missouri.”
For more information about disaster preparedness or the Prepare Greater St. Louis initiative, call the Chapter at 314.516.2800 or visit www.redcrossstl.org.
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