As Hurricane Sandy begins to weaken and pass, cleanup efforts and relief are needed.  Here is how you can help through the American Red Cross.

NOTE – Only use reputable charities and organizations in order to avoid scams.

FINANCIAL HELP

Financial donations help the Red Cross provide shelter, food, emotional support and other assistance to those affected by disasters like Hurricane Sandy. To donate, people can visit www.redcross.org , call 1-800-RED-CROSS, or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Contributions may also be sent to someone’s local Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013.

The Salvation Army is also accepting donations for Hurricane Sandy relief efforts.  You can donate online by clicking on the following link: https://donate.salvationarmyusa.org/disaster

Also with the Salvation Army, you can contact your local branch HERE to find out if items are needed such as food, clothing, children’s toys, or other goods.

NON-MONETARY HELP

You can also help in non-financial ways.  To donate blood or platelets, please go to the American Red Cross Blood website:  http://www.redcrossblood.org/make-donation now to find a location near you where you can help.

RED CROSS APPS

More than 235,000 people have downloaded the free Red Cross Hurricane App Friday when Sandy began approaching, making it one of the most popular free apps. The app gives up-to-date weather alerts, information on open Red Cross shelters, a toolkit with a flashlight, strobe light and alarm and a one-touch “I’m Safe” button that lets someone use social media outlets to let family and friends know they are okay.

People have been using the app to find shelters, to set up locations for the app to monitor, to make a disaster plan, and learn what steps they can take to stay safe. The app is available in Spanish just by changing the smart phone setting to Spanish before downloading.

The First Aid app puts expert advice for everyday emergencies in a person’s hand. Both can be found in the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store for Android by searching for American Red Cross.

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