The American Red Cross continues to respond to the devastating wildfires in eastern Washington that have destroyed hundreds of homes and continue to force evacuations. Two additional Red Cross disaster workers from Colorado have been sent to Wenatchee, Wash. to support the Red Cross relief and recovery effort.
Susan Wiseman from the Western Colorado Chapter departed on July 31, 2014 to serve as a driver for the Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV). The ERV is an important part of the Red Cross response and recovery effort and is used to deliver supplies and equipment throughout the recovery area. Wiseman has been a Red Cross volunteer since 2005 and this will be her ninth disaster deployment that includes the 2013 Colorado Floods. “Sue is one of those volunteers that really wants to help,” said Eric Myers, Executive Director for the Western Colorado Chapter. “She loves to be out there helping people.”
Julie Demaree will depart August 6, 2014 to support the disaster response headquarters in Wenatchee, Wash. as a member of the Disaster Services Technology Team (DST). Members of DST provide computer resources that support the Red Cross disaster response. She has been a volunteer for the Red Cross since June of 2012. Demaree worked the 2013 Wildfires and Floods in Colorado but this will be her first “out-of-state” deployment. “I feel this is my chance to pay back those volunteers that came to Colorado and helped us last year,” she said.
This brings the total deployment of disaster responders from Colorado to the Eastern Washington Wildfires to five. Typical disaster deployment is 14 to 21 days depending on the needs of the disaster and the availability of the volunteer.