SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH (Tuesday, January 20, 2009) — This morning the Mountain Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross is helping 16 people after an apartment fire in Provo ripped through their building located at 750 South and 650 West. One person was taken to the hospital. The local McDonalds and Denny’s donated breakfast for those residents this morning. Local authorities say the cause of the fire is under investigation.
Also this weekend, the Greater Salt Lake Area Chapter disaster action team volunteers helped two separate families after house fires. Saturday night, a home in the Avenues burned leaving an extended family of 6 people in need of immediate services. The Red Cross volunteers are working with them to provide shelter and food. The home was located at 576 East 9th Avenue.
Another fire occurred at 7230 Adams in Magna on Sunday. Red Cross Volunteer Bob Kelleher said, “The house is a total loss, they lost everything.” The family of four also lost their two dogs and a pet lizard in the fire. Their children were devastated. A cat escaped through a window broken by firefighters.
In Ogden, the Northern Utah American Red Cross Disaster Action Team volunteers helped one man, hospitalized, after his home burned in a fire that firefighters said started in the kitchen. The fire occurred early this morning at 1652 Dunsinane Circle in Ogden.
Chapters in Utah respond to about 200 incidents each year, some of them render multiple families homeless. Nationwide, the American Red Cross’s local chapters help victims of major and minor disasters by offering immediate comfort, which may include food, a warm place to stay, clothing and other life necessities. Volunteers give comfort kits to victims of fire, flood or other disasters. The kits include helpful items like toothbrushes, toothpaste and a toy for children.
If you’d like to help, financial donations are always accepted to help those affected by these fires and other disasters in your community. For more information about donating to the Chapter Emergency Services please go to www.utahredcross.org or call 801.323.7000.
About the American Red Cross, Greater Salt Lake Area Chapter:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and counsels victims of disasters; teaches life saving skills; supplies blood to more than 30 area hospitals; and supports military members and their families. The American Red Cross is a nonprofit organization, not a government funded agency, which depends entirely upon volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its humanitarian mission. Donate your time or resources to the Greater Salt Lake Area Chapter of the American Red Cross by calling 801-323-7000 or visit www.utahredcross.org.
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