When Florida was recently hit by the first hurricane to make landfall in more than a decade, the American Red Cross and U-Haul were ready to respond.
Hermine struck the Sunshine State as the calendar turned to September, causing flooding and evacuations in a number of regions.
“We were able to secure a 26-foot U-Haul truck for our bulk distribution,” said Denny Dionne, Regional Fleet Technical Lead for Red Cross of Central Florida. “This truck was extremely valuable to us because we used it to haul large pallets of bottled water and Red Cross clean-up kits from local and long-distance housing facilities directly to our distribution sites.”
The Red Cross, one of the world’s most respected nonprofits, offers a breadth of experience and volunteer manpower in disaster response situations. U-Haul, a member of the Red Cross Disaster Responder Program, in turn lends its assistance to the Red Cross with donations of equipment, self-storage and other services in times of need.
“We are thankful to have corporate partners such as U-Haul, who step up in troubled times to provide assistance,” said Linda Carbone, regional CEO, American Red Cross Central Florida. “This allows us to provide goods and materials directly to the people affected by the many floods and tornadoes that we have experienced in 2016.”
U-Haul is among 42 members of the Disaster Responder Program companies that pledge annual support so that the Red Cross can prepare for and respond to disasters of all sizes. The Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disaster, supplies about 40 percent of the blood in the U.S., teaches skills that saves lives, provides international humanitarian aid, and supports military members and their families.
You can join U-Haul in becoming an everyday hero for the Red Cross. To learn more about the Red Cross or to make a donation, visit redcross.org.
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