Thousands of people affected by Hurricane Helene need help now. Your donation enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from this disaster.
Visit redcross.org, call 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) to make a financial donation or to schedule a blood donation appointment. Individuals can also text the word HELENE to 90999 to make a donation.
CANCELED BLOOD DRIVES
Helene has canceled blood drives throughout Georgia and the Carolinas causing more than 1,000 blood donations to go uncollected, and this number is growing.
As communities feel the effects of Helene, patients are fighting their own battle. Some of these patients urgently need closely matched blood donations to weather their health crises. If you’re in a safe area, you have the power to be a lifeline.
Please schedule a blood donation appointment now by visiting RedCrossBlood.org, using the Blood Donor App or calling 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767) to help restock the shelves.
FIND A SHELTER Evacuation shelters are open across the region. You can find evacuation shelters on redcross.org, the free Red Cross Emergency app or by calling 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767). You can also find shelters by following your local Red Cross and local emergency officials on social media, or by monitoring local news. If you need assistance finding or going to a shelter in the Big Bend region, call 800-729-3413 for help.
All the information you need about coming to a shelter is here.
HELP LOCATING SOMEONE The Red Cross can help you reconnect with loved ones missing because of Hurricane Helene. If someone:
- Has a serious, pre-existing health, mental health condition or Functional and Access Need;
- Is a member of the military-connected community (active duty, reserve, guard, retiree, veteran, or immediate family member);
- Or you shared the same residence within the disaster impact area, or have recently been in contact with someone (within the past year) but are unable to reach them because of the disaster;
- Call 1-800 RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) and provide as much detail available to assist us in potentially locating your missing loved one. More information is available here.
CLIMATE CRISIS Helene could be the start of a series of back-to-back storms that threaten the U.S. as additional systems form in the Atlantic. Experts report Hurricane Helene was able to grow and become more destructive because of hotter-than-average ocean temperatures caused by the climate crisis, which is bringing more frequent and intense disasters that upend lives. In response, the Red Cross is providing food, shelter and recovery support on a nearly continual basis.
Find safety steps for different emergencies – including hurricanes and power outages – here.
Written by the American Red Cross.