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Gov. Malloy thanks Red Cross volunteers for Hurricane Harvey relief

FARMINGTON —  Volunteers from the Connecticut chapter of the American Red Cross continue to be deployed to Texas for disaster relief following Hurricane H...
Malloy – harvey

FARMINGTON —  Volunteers from the Connecticut chapter of the American Red Cross continue to be deployed to Texas for disaster relief following Hurricane Harvey.

Some of those volunteers received a thank you visit from Governor Dannel Malloy Friday morning.

“We have neighbors, far away neighbors, that need our help. You guys are part of a really gigantic team that spreads across the country that helps people be prepared,” Malloy said as he greeted volunteers at their Farmington facility.

Mario Bruno, the CEO of the Connecticut and Rhode Island Red Cross said roughly 60 Connecticut volunteers have been deployed for relief efforts and many more are expected to be sent in the coming weeks.

Many of the volunteers sent are working in the more than 200 Red Cross shelters that have been set up in Texas since the hurricane hit.

“We’re feeding about 32,000 people right now who were evacuated from this storm,” Bruno explained.

The Red Cross deployment operation from the Connecticut and Rhode Island region continues to be active and ongoing as they send roughly two to five individuals each day.

“We will deploying folks to Texas and Louisiana for the next few months,” Bruno added.

During the Governor’s visit to the Red Cross, he pointed out Connecticut has faced its fair share of storms, from Super Storm Sandy to Hurricane Irene to the October snow storm.

“I think one of the things about every storm is every storm is different and you learn different lessons,” Malloy said, adding those lessons should ideally lead to change and improvements.

“We are better prepared today than we were in 2011, but as this particular storm shows you can’t really predict what you’re going to get, so you have to be ready for the worst,” Malloy added.

Malloy was also urging the public to take the lead on storm preparedness as the east coast is still in the thick of hurricane season.

One of Connecticut’s latest efforts to helping with Hurricane Harvey relief is to take on diverted 211 phone calls. Connecticut is one of a dozen states who are taking in an overload of 211 calls from Texas residents seeking information and help.

click here to find out how you can help donate to the Harvey relief.

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