EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — As Florida braces for the arrival of Hurricane Milton, the Red Cross has deployed 1,000 volunteers to assist with relief efforts including four volunteers from El Paso.
Hurricane Milton, which has been downgraded to a Category 3 storm, is expected to cause significant damage along Florida’s west coast just weeks after the region was hit by Hurricane Helene.
Although the storm has shifted slightly south from its original path, it still poses a severe threat to the Florida Peninsula.
One of the local volunteers, Alberto Flores, 70, from El Paso, has been in Florida for two weeks. He was initially deployed for Hurricane Helene.
With Hurricane Milton approaching, Flores said the Red Cross is preparing for extensive recovery efforts.
“Hopefully, you can get everybody to pray for us because that’s what’s keeping us there, the good Lord,” Flores said.
Flores was stationed in Tampa Bay but was moved to Tallahassee to ensure the safety of volunteers and supplies as the storm approached.
The executive director for the Red Cross in El Paso, Anna Apodaca, said they are working tirelessly to provide support and shelter to those affected.
“We have many shelters overlapping in different areas because the need is so big,” Apodaca said.
“Last night alone, we provided over 32,000 overnight stays,” she said.
Apodaca also highlighted the increasing demand for volunteers across the country, with disasters such as the recent wildfires in the west, lingering damage from Hurricane Helene, and now Hurricane Milton.
“There’s a need for 8,000 volunteers across the country to ensure we can continue to provide disaster relief,” Apodaca said.
The Red Cross continues to prepare for a long recovery period in Florida as the storm approaches.
Individuals interested in volunteering with the Red Cross can find more information by clicking on this link American Red Cross | Help Those Affected by Disasters.
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