Relief Organizations, Volunteers From Tri-State Area Heading To Tornado-Impacted Areas Of Midwest And South
STAMFORD, Conn. (CBSNewYork) -- The devastation in Kentucky and other states has left many residents without homes, and others without power or water.
Groups from across the Tri-State Area are deploying volunteers and supplies to the areas most in need of help, CBS2's Nick Caloway reported Monday.
Box after box and load after load were packed, wrapped and shipped out of a warehouse in Stamford, bound for disaster zones in Kentucky, Illinois, and beyond.
"Communities have just been demolished. There's debris everywhere," said Kate Dischino, vice president of emergency programs at Americares.
Dischino said the relief group has critical items pre-positioned and ready to go when disaster strikes.
"Hygiene kits for displaced survivors, bottled water because there's water disruptions following the tornado, and also medicines and medical supplies," Dischino said.
It's still very early on in the recovery following the severe storms and tornados. Many groups are standing by while first responders do the most important work of saving lives.
But the widespread devastation means the needs will be great.
"Clinics are not working as they are supposed to, so that medical clinic really helps to facilitate the need for the community," said Abdul Kahn of ICNA Relief USA.
READ MORE: Tornado Death Toll Rises To 64 In Kentucky; Search And Rescue Efforts Still Underway
Kahn's organization is already on the ground in Kentucky. The group offers everything from tree-cutting services to mobile health clinics.
"It was very, very difficult to see this," Kahn said.
The Red Cross is also sending an army of volunteers and supplies to the impacted areas. Husband and wife volunteers John and Margaret Delaney, of Ewing, New Jersey, are flying out Tuesday.
"We're both retired. This is something we can do, and it's nice to be able to give back to the world and society," John Delaney said.
Relief groups say the best way you can help right now is to make financial donations to trusted organizations that will be helping with the immediate and long-term recovery.
If you want to help, please click here.
New York City's Office of Emergency Management said it, too, has answered the call for help.
At the Federal Emergency Management Agency's request, members of urban search and rescue New York Task Force One have been sent to help search and rescue operations in Kentucky.
The deployment includes two specially trained personnel from NYPD Special Operations and the FDNY.
CBS2's Nick Caloway contributed to this report.
