For immediate
assistance, please call (719) 632-3563
Get
in Touch with Loved Ones Affected
By Disaster
The Red Cross public web site features a secure section
called Safe
and Well
where people in the disaster-affected area can register
their well-being and where friends and family elsewhere
can access that information. By registering themselves on
Safe and Well before evacuations are ordered, or once safely
away from wildfire, storm, or flood, residents can let loved
ones know their status when telecommunication gets difficult.
Anyone concerned about a loved one that they are unable
to contact, can visit the Search page, enter the person's
name and pre-disaster phone number OR address. If their
loved one has registered, inquirers will be able to view
the messages that they posted.
To identify yourself or someone else as Safe
and Well, or search for someone from the affected area:
- Visit the Safe
and Well web site or call Safe and
Well at 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767)
- If you hear from a loved one in the affected area, enter
their information on the site to let people know they are
Safe and Well
- If you
have phone or internet access, share that with your neighbors
who do not. Invite them to use your computer access to place
themselves on the site. Share your cell phone with your
neighbors who may need to call 1-800-RED-CROSS for help
listing their information.
Each year, the American Red Cross Pikes Peak chapter responds
immediately to more than 70 disasters, including house or
apartment fires (the majority of disaster responses), tornadoes,
floods, wildfires, winter storms and other natural and man-made
disasters.
The Good News Is That We Can Help
Although the American Red Cross is not a government agency,
its authority to provide disaster relief was formalized when,
in 1905, the Red Cross was chartered by Congress to "carry
on a system of national and international relief in time of
peace and apply the same in mitigating the sufferings caused
by pestilence, famine, fire, floods, and other great national
calamities, and to devise and carry on measures for preventing
the same." The Charter is not only a grant of power,
but also an imposition of duties and obligations to the nation,
to disaster victims, and to the people who generously support
its work with their donations.
Red Cross disaster relief focuses on meeting people's immediate
emergency disaster-caused needs. When a disaster threatens
or strikes, the Red Cross provides shelter, food, and health
and mental health services to address basic human needs. In
addition to these services, the core of Red Cross disaster
relief is the assistance given to individuals and families
affected by disaster to enable them to resume their normal
daily activities independently.
As a client of the American Red Cross we will work with you
to help determine your needs and plan your recovery, based
on the effects of the disaster on your and your family, your
specific damages, your personal resources and resources in
the community. We will provide assistance to meet your disaster-caused
basic needs, which may be different from those of your neighbors
and friends. The Red Cross provides assistance to meet disaster-caused
needs, and ensures accountability with you, our donors and
the American public.
All Red Cross disaster assistance and services are free,
provided through donations made by the American people, and
are provided without regard to citizenship, race, religion,
age, culture or creed. Disaster assistance is intended to
meet your emergency, disaster-caused needs and provide a basis
for your recovery. American Red Cross assistance is not entitlement
and is not intended to replace all disaster-caused losses,
replace or reimburse wages or duplicate government and personal
resources or community assistance and services.
If you've been affected by a house fire or other disaster
and need immediate emergency assistance, please contact us
at the number above so that we may help.
For Non-Disaster Related Needs
Sponsored by the Pikes Peaks United Way, 211
is a special three-digit phone number connecting those in
need in our communities with those agencies and organizations
that can assist them. It is not for life-threatening emergencies,
it is a service providing information and referral to local
services. Now, instead of making multiple phone calls to try
and find help, you can simply pick up your phone and dial
2-1-1 to find assistance.
