McKinley, Cibola set
to help Gustav victims

Copyright © 2008
Gallup Independent
By Jim Tiffin
Cibola County Bureau

GRANTS — As Hurricane Gustav stormed ashore in southern Louisiana, striking New Orleans much like Hurricane Katrina did in 2005, local American Red Cross workers prepared for the possibility of evacuees being sent to Cibola or McKinley counties.

As of late Monday night, more than 1 million people were without electricity and only one levee had collapsed, meaning New Orleans missed the catastrophe that could have been like Katrina.

Nevertheless, there are evacuees seeking places to go until they are allowed to go home. No one knows what kind of time frame emergency agencies need to restore power and drain flooded communities.

William Merriman, Cibola County American Red Cross coordinator, said the Red Cross would like monetary donations, not items like blankets or other physical things.
“Logistics is a problem. How do we store those items, how can we ship them, perishables can go bad before they are received ... money is better because we can wire that money to Louisiana and American Red Cross workers there can buy what they need,” Merriman said.

Donations

Anyone wishing to donate money to the Red Cross is asked to write a check, and if the money is to be used for Hurricane Gustav relief, indicate that on the face of the check so Red Cross workers know where to send the funds, he said. Donations are tax deductible.

In Cibola County, donations may be made to Grants State Bank, or mailed to the American Red Cross San Juan Chapter, 2100 Cortland Drive, Farmington, NM 87401.
If donations are made at the bank, tell the bank teller the funds are to be used for Hurricane Gustav relief and ask them to note that on the account, he said.

Gallup and McKinley County donations may be mailed to the Farmington address. There is no bank available in Gallup or in the county that has an account set up for such donations, Donna Wade, ARC disaster response director in Farmington said.

The San Juan Chapter has deployed its emergency response vehicle with two drivers to assist in emergency relief operations as a result of Hurricane Gustav, Wade said.

Joy Jimenez, who has been deployed to 22 disaster relief operations and Shirley Hancock, who was deployed twice to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, are the Farmington ARC disaster response team. They have arrived in San Antonio and received directions to go to Tyler, Texas, near the west coast of Louisiana.

“There is a lot of experience there,” Wade said.

Volunteers

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, is asking for volunteers to go to a special Web site to donate their services: www.volunteerlouisiana.gov.

Medical volunteers should go to: www.lava.dhh.louisiana.gov. Volunteers who do not have access to the Internet should call 1-800 -755-5175.

The American Red Cross also has a national Web site and toll free number for people who wish to donate other than to the local ARC chapter and locations: 1-800-REDCROSS (1-800-733-2627), or: www.redcross.org.
Additionally, ARC shelters in Cibola and McKinley counties have been put on standby in preparation for possible evacuees.

“We are completely ready to respond for evacuees,” Wade said, “whether the state Emergency Operations Center opens the central shelter in Albuquerque or local shelters.

If Albuquerque is opened, we will send our resources there,” she said.

In Cibola County, the First Baptist Church, next to the Cibola County complex on West High Street, is the primary shelter, Merriman said.

“We store mattresses there, it has a large gymnasium, rest rooms, rooms for administrative and medical staffs to set up and full kitchen facilities,” he said.

The other shelters in Cibola County at the First United Methodist Church and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints near Cibola General Hospital, he said.

In McKinley County, the shelters are the Kiwanis camp and the recreation center on Monahan, Wade said.

Officials wanted to be extremely clear about one thing: Those shelters have not been activated, they are not open for business, they are only on standby in case they are needed, Wade said.

At the state level, Gov. Bill Richardson has activated 500 New Mexico National Guard troops, 36 trucks and two Blackhawk helicopters and they are on their way to assist with Hurricane Gustav relief and rescue operations.

National American Red Cross information: 1-800-733-2627.

On the net: American Red Cross, www.redcross.org
FEMA: www.fema.gov

To contact reporter Jim Tiffin call (505) 285-4560.