September 27, 2024 • 7 mins
With Helene moving in, there's a need for help on every level and not just giving blood. Nikki Salladay, Red Cross Regional Disaster Officer, joins Tony & Scott with plenty of opportunities (some you've never heard of) to help during this time of need here at home.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Good morning.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
I'm Tony Cruz News Radio A forty WJAS. Nikki Saladay
is the regional disaster officer here in Kentuckyana, and she
joins us this morning here. NICKI, first of all, welcome
to the news radio A forty whas and tell us a
little bit about what you're planning today with the Red Cross.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
Yeah. Absolutely, thank you so much for having me on
this morning. And we are actively working to deploy train
volunteers down to Florida and Georgia, South Carolina wherever they
need to go in the path that has been affected
by the path of Helene. We already have six volunteers
who have left. We've actually got a crew that's leaving
(00:43):
this morning with one of our emergency response vehicles, obviously
waiting for safety in that travel and making sure that
they are not going to hurt themselves as they travel.
So we'll be touching base with them and keeping monitoring
on that. There are over four hundred volunteers from across
the country already in Florida and Georgia ahead of the
(01:06):
storm and there to help with the evacuation centers and
now transitioning into overnight shelters as those are needed as
we assess the impact, and there are more than three
hundred volunteers already in the queue traveling today and tomorrow.
We will be working really actively to continue to deploy
volunteers into the areas that have been impacted and are
(01:28):
always looking for new volunteers who can help with that.
Here at home, we've been working with emergency managers in
all of our counties as well as the state Emergency
Management to assess what could be coming here in Kentucky
with regards to high winds, potential of flash flooding, and
then our volunteers are set and ready to go with
response at home should we need to open in the shelters,
(01:51):
assist with feeding, emergency supply distribution, and damage assessment.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
Well, that explains a lot of what the Red Cross
does right there.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
You know.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Sometimes we just think of blood drives and we need
to give blood and make sure that we have blood
for people who are in accidents or just need blood
through surgeries and those kinds of things. But it's so
much more than that, right with the emergency supplies, even
financial assistance and emotional support.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
Absolutely absolutely it is and yes, definitely are going to
need folks to be able to help with rolling up
their sleeves and giving blood over the next few days.
I can't even imagine how many blood drives have already
been canceled, and we'll have to be canceled across the country,
and we are already in need of blood and assistance
with that. And so definitely folks who maybe they aren't
(02:41):
able to assist with the disaster deployment, there are ways
to help by doing exactly that, rolling up their sleeves,
giving blood at blood drives where they can over the
next few days, even a few weeks to really help
with that need. And then additionally that financial donation, and
people can do that through ether're going online through Redcross
(03:02):
dot org, checking out our Red Cross apps, as well
as calling into one eight hundred Red Cross or even
texting nine oh nine nine, and that gives a ten
dollars donation to the Red Cross.
Speaker 4 (03:15):
You know, Nikki, what is the most in demand blood
type that you look for in events like this?
Speaker 1 (03:22):
Oh? Oh, it is always it is. It's the universal
donor and so oh blood is always the most in
demand blood because it can be given to every blood type.
Speaker 4 (03:36):
And also when you're talking about volunteers that are hitting
the road. What sort of work do they do? Say
I'm at home now and I'm listening to go you
know what, I really want to be part of this.
Deploy me to a place like Georgia or Florida or
anywhere in Kentucky for that matter. What are some of
the things folks can do? How do you utilize them?
Speaker 1 (03:54):
Wow? Yeah, that is a great question. And there are
so many ways that people can get involved as a volunteer.
So it's not just you know, doing manual type labor,
but we use volunteers in emergency shelters and working overnight
in shelters with clients. We also do distribution of emergency
supplies and so those are things like cleanup kits, shovels, rakes, tarps,
(04:18):
work gloves, things that people might need as they are
going back through their what is left of their belongings
and trying to help clean up from that. We do feeding.
We do that in our emergency response vehicles, so we
actually travel roads to provide meals to people that may
be again in their homes, in their areas trying to
clean up after power outages, you know, where they may
(04:42):
not be able to get to a restaurant or cook
a meal at home. And then we also do what
we call fixed site feeding, which is we feed people
in the shelters as well as at specific locations where
they can come and get a meal, so we really
try to reach people in that. We also have volunteers
who do damage assessment, So those are ones that are
traveling around assessing homes for the level of damage, and
(05:05):
we use femas We work very closely with FEMA and
use their damage assessment classifications. We also then have volunteers
who are working with community partners, working with elected officials,
government officials, emergency management and being that voice and that communication.
We've got volunteers that are.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Doing what I'm doing right now that do media interviews
and help work with the public affairs side of things.
And then we've got a lot of folks that work
on the back end of everything, because of course, for
a vehicle to run, you've got to have somebody who's
monitoring that transportation. For a meal to go out, you've
got somebody who's working on the logistics of that, and
so we've got people who work in warehouses who are
(05:47):
working on the computer with regards to tracking all the
vehicles that are out there in transportation, helping us find
facilities to set up in or to establish space. So
really it's not all frontline work, but there's a lot
of that, but there's so much that can be done
even if you're like I'm not really I don't know
about people, but I want to help. I can do computers,
(06:12):
or I can do organization.
Speaker 1 (06:15):
That's really kind of the sky's the limit.
Speaker 4 (06:17):
Nikki.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
We so appreciate you being a part of our broadcast
today and well, thank you.
Speaker 4 (06:22):
And not lost on this Tony too is Amber Amber
Youngblood with the Red Cross too. She is amazing. I
was telling Nikki off the air that that the Red
Cross is so awesome I called him with anything and
they are like, at already Amber ants. Amber's not even
there today and she's answering my emails for him. Thank you,
Amber seven. You guys are such a well oiled machine, Nikki,
(06:43):
and it came through in that interview very clear too,
So great job.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
Thank you, so thank you, Thank you both so much
for the opportunity to join you guys today.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Anytime. Let us know. Nikki Saladay, Regional Disaster Officer here
in Kentucky. Canna Scott Fitzgerald and Tony Cruse Kentuck Antas
morning News, We're going to get Love's sports coming up
here in just a little bit, and John Shannon has
our news. Follow the Autum
Good morning.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
I'm Tony Cruz News Radio A forty WJAS. Nikki Saladay
is the regional disaster officer here in Kentuckyana, and she
joins us this morning here. NICKI, first of all, welcome
to the news radio A forty whas and tell us a
little bit about what you're planning today with the Red Cross.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
Yeah. Absolutely, thank you so much for having me on
this morning. And we are actively working to deploy train
volunteers down to Florida and Georgia, South Carolina wherever they
need to go in the path that has been affected
by the path of Helene. We already have six volunteers
who have left. We've actually got a crew that's leaving
(00:43):
this morning with one of our emergency response vehicles, obviously
waiting for safety in that travel and making sure that
they are not going to hurt themselves as they travel.
So we'll be touching base with them and keeping monitoring
on that. There are over four hundred volunteers from across
the country already in Florida and Georgia ahead of the
(01:06):
storm and there to help with the evacuation centers and
now transitioning into overnight shelters as those are needed as
we assess the impact, and there are more than three
hundred volunteers already in the queue traveling today and tomorrow.
We will be working really actively to continue to deploy
volunteers into the areas that have been impacted and are
(01:28):
always looking for new volunteers who can help with that.
Here at home, we've been working with emergency managers in
all of our counties as well as the state Emergency
Management to assess what could be coming here in Kentucky
with regards to high winds, potential of flash flooding, and
then our volunteers are set and ready to go with
response at home should we need to open in the shelters,
(01:51):
assist with feeding, emergency supply distribution, and damage assessment.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
Well, that explains a lot of what the Red Cross
does right there.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
You know.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Sometimes we just think of blood drives and we need
to give blood and make sure that we have blood
for people who are in accidents or just need blood
through surgeries and those kinds of things. But it's so
much more than that, right with the emergency supplies, even
financial assistance and emotional support.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
Absolutely absolutely it is and yes, definitely are going to
need folks to be able to help with rolling up
their sleeves and giving blood over the next few days.
I can't even imagine how many blood drives have already
been canceled, and we'll have to be canceled across the country,
and we are already in need of blood and assistance
with that. And so definitely folks who maybe they aren't
(02:41):
able to assist with the disaster deployment, there are ways
to help by doing exactly that, rolling up their sleeves,
giving blood at blood drives where they can over the
next few days, even a few weeks to really help
with that need. And then additionally that financial donation, and
people can do that through ether're going online through Redcross
(03:02):
dot org, checking out our Red Cross apps, as well
as calling into one eight hundred Red Cross or even
texting nine oh nine nine, and that gives a ten
dollars donation to the Red Cross.
Speaker 4 (03:15):
You know, Nikki, what is the most in demand blood
type that you look for in events like this?
Speaker 1 (03:22):
Oh? Oh, it is always it is. It's the universal
donor and so oh blood is always the most in
demand blood because it can be given to every blood type.
Speaker 4 (03:36):
And also when you're talking about volunteers that are hitting
the road. What sort of work do they do? Say
I'm at home now and I'm listening to go you
know what, I really want to be part of this.
Deploy me to a place like Georgia or Florida or
anywhere in Kentucky for that matter. What are some of
the things folks can do? How do you utilize them?
Speaker 1 (03:54):
Wow? Yeah, that is a great question. And there are
so many ways that people can get involved as a volunteer.
So it's not just you know, doing manual type labor,
but we use volunteers in emergency shelters and working overnight
in shelters with clients. We also do distribution of emergency
supplies and so those are things like cleanup kits, shovels, rakes, tarps,
(04:18):
work gloves, things that people might need as they are
going back through their what is left of their belongings
and trying to help clean up from that. We do feeding.
We do that in our emergency response vehicles, so we
actually travel roads to provide meals to people that may
be again in their homes, in their areas trying to
clean up after power outages, you know, where they may
(04:42):
not be able to get to a restaurant or cook
a meal at home. And then we also do what
we call fixed site feeding, which is we feed people
in the shelters as well as at specific locations where
they can come and get a meal, so we really
try to reach people in that. We also have volunteers
who do damage assessment, So those are ones that are
traveling around assessing homes for the level of damage, and
(05:05):
we use femas We work very closely with FEMA and
use their damage assessment classifications. We also then have volunteers
who are working with community partners, working with elected officials,
government officials, emergency management and being that voice and that communication.
We've got volunteers that are.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Doing what I'm doing right now that do media interviews
and help work with the public affairs side of things.
And then we've got a lot of folks that work
on the back end of everything, because of course, for
a vehicle to run, you've got to have somebody who's
monitoring that transportation. For a meal to go out, you've
got somebody who's working on the logistics of that, and
so we've got people who work in warehouses who are
(05:47):
working on the computer with regards to tracking all the
vehicles that are out there in transportation, helping us find
facilities to set up in or to establish space. So
really it's not all frontline work, but there's a lot
of that, but there's so much that can be done
even if you're like I'm not really I don't know
about people, but I want to help. I can do computers,
(06:12):
or I can do organization.
Speaker 1 (06:15):
That's really kind of the sky's the limit.
Speaker 4 (06:17):
Nikki.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
We so appreciate you being a part of our broadcast
today and well, thank you.
Speaker 4 (06:22):
And not lost on this Tony too is Amber Amber
Youngblood with the Red Cross too. She is amazing. I
was telling Nikki off the air that that the Red
Cross is so awesome I called him with anything and
they are like, at already Amber ants. Amber's not even
there today and she's answering my emails for him. Thank you,
Amber seven. You guys are such a well oiled machine, Nikki,
(06:43):
and it came through in that interview very clear too,
So great job.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
Thank you, so thank you, Thank you both so much
for the opportunity to join you guys today.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Anytime. Let us know. Nikki Saladay, Regional Disaster Officer here
in Kentucky. Canna Scott Fitzgerald and Tony Cruse Kentuck Antas
morning News, We're going to get Love's sports coming up
here in just a little bit, and John Shannon has
our news. Follow the Autum
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