Disaster Response (Page 18)

At the Rigaud public library, a dozen people impacted by the floods have come to meet Red Cross volunteers in order to register and receive emergency assistance. In the waiting room, the mood is unpredictable. Laughter can quickly give way to sorrow, and for good reason. This is the second flood in three years for most of the residents here.

When the Canadian Red Cross field hospital cholera treatment centre opened in Nhamatanda, Mozambique on Thursday, Elisa Armando was one of the first into the tent. Elisa, 19, brought her three-year-old son Joaquim who had diarrhea and was throwing up.
The international team of doctors and nurses from Finland, Mozambique, Canada and Israel, worked to get fluids into Joaquim.

When the tornadoes hit the Mont-Bleu neighbourhood on September 21st of last year, Carmen was behind the wheel. She had no idea that a tornado was coming. Carmen has been a Walmart associate at the Plateau branch for nearly 10 years and doesn’t carry her cellphone with her at work.

Last week, a devestating cyclone made landfall in Mozambique, Malawi, and Zimbabwe. The powerful Cyclone Idai has caused flooding, damaged infrastructure, crops, and homes. The Red Cross is responding, ready to provide aid to those who need it. 

This is the story of a small guinea pig named Gertrude Rose who escaped a devastating house fire with her human. They are now slowly recovering thanks to the efforts of local fire and paramedics, the comfort they give each other and the support of the Canadian Red Cross.

Over two years ago, Nicole Greville was one of more than 80,000 Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo residents impacted by devastating forest fires. When she returned to Fort McMurray weeks after being evacuated, she felt restless and sidelined. She decided to become a walk-in volunteer for the Canadian Red Cross.
 

With the year winding to an end, we took a look back at some of our most engaging blog posts from 2018. With natural disasters and emergencies occurring across Canada and the world, these blogs reflect the willingness of people to help and some inspiring stories of people wanting to make a difference. Here are the top 10 blogs from 2018.

Our volunteers consist of thousands of remarkable Canadians, generously giving their time to help others in need. Here we sit down with one such volunteer from P.E.I., Jamie MacKay who shares what he has seen and experienced as a volunteer, and why he does it.