Texas Tornado and Flood Response: Are You Ready to Go All In For Texas?

A Message from T.D. Smyers, Chief Executive Officer, American Red Cross North Texas Region

On June 2, our fellow Red Crossers around the nation will be asking Americans to give to our first-ever #allin1day fundraising effort to enable the American Red Cross to deliver help and hope to their friends and neighbors where the need is greatest.  Here in Texas, the greatest need is right here at home.

All across the state, severe weather, tornadoes and flooding have devastated neighborhoods and forced thousands of people from their homes since early May. The Red Cross has been there since the beginning to provide critical humanitarian relief the moment it’s needed. From EF-3 tornadoes in Cisco and Van, Texas to flooding in San Marcos and Houston that is still ongoing, we’ve provided a safe and dry place to stay, warm meals and comforting hugs for hundreds of our fellow Texans.

This is Emily Martinez, her husband and their 2-week-old son Nano. They are safe in a Red Cross shelter in San Marcos today after they woke up late last Sunday night to find a foot of water in their trailer home. They looked outside and saw the water rising.

“We were terrified. The water was so deep, and I was so scared,” said Mrs. Martinez. 

At the shelter, little Nano soon gained a surrogate aunt in Red Cross volunteer Jillana Holt-Reuter, “Gigi.” As Auntie Gigi held Nano, Mr. Martinez tells her how happy he is to have his family together.

“The Red Cross has been wonderful. I don’t know what we would do without their help. We have a safe place to sleep, food, friendly Red Cross friends and there are nurses here for us. We’re really very thankful.”

We’ve heard so many stories like the Martinez’s in our shelters all around Texas. We are privileged to be doing our part to help families on their road to recovery. 

Now we need your help as we continue responding to disasters big and small, like the tornadoes and floods in Texas. Visit RedCross.org/Donate or by calling 1-800-REDCROSS. We have a long way to go in this relief effort, part of more than 70,000 disasters the Red Cross responds to every year.

More than 2,000 Red Cross volunteers and staffers have worked on this massive relief operation, but all but 800 of them are actually from in-state. This is Texans helping Texans, answering the call when our neighbors need it the most.

Show your Support in the Social Space: 

Join us as we go All In For Texas. Use hashtag #allin4TX and change your social network icons to show your support! Below are some other ways to share.

For every Texan whose life you’ll touch with your support, THANK YOU.

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Red Cross Service Centers Provide Help and Hope

by Carl Manning, guest contributor

A resident speaks with Red Cross nurses at a service center in Van, TX.

Red Cross Service Centers provide assistance to people affected by disasters such as tornadoes and flooding, often working with partner agencies to provide needed assistance. 

Among services available at the Centers are caseworkers who help those affected with immediate needs and help plan long-term recovery; registered nurses providing health services; licensed mental health counselors, and Red Cross volunteers who can assess home damage. 

The Red Cross has a Service Center in Van at the Community Center, 310 Chestnut. An EF-3 tornado damaged or destroyed more than 100 homes. It’s the same location where the Red Cross had been part the Multi-Agency Resource Center. 

The Red Cross on Monday opened a Service Center in the city of Bowie at 710 West Wise Street. Many residents in the Bowie area were affected by the recent flooding. 

There is also a service center available at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, 18220 Upper Bay Road, in Houston, Texas for residents affected by flooding.

The Red Cross will continue to be part of the recovery process in Texas. Click here to see a list of current shelters and service centers.

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Red Cross Preparing For and Supporting Storm Relief Efforts Across Texas

Even as we continue to support efforts in Van & around the state, we're preparing for more possible severe weather & flooding around Texas this weekend. Today, we sent truckloads of supplies to Waco and other Red Cross locations to the south, so we'll be ready to respond if we're needed.

Be weather-aware this weekend & make sure you talk to your family about what to do in an emergency. Download our free mobile preparedness apps to receive weather alerts and safety information!

Follow us on Twitter @RedCrossDFW for updates!

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