As Hurricane Sandy continues to affect the region the American Red Cross continues it’s work to provide for the needs of West Virginian’s.
“We were able to touch base with all of the emergency managers in each county and gearing up for what might be needed in the next day or so kind of making sure that everybody is safe and that needs are being met throughout the entire state,” said Katie Bender with the American Red Cross.
As of Monday evening, the Red Cross had three shelters opened in the eastern panhandle due to flooding and Bender said they are ready and expecting to open more in the next couple days.
“We have volunteers ready to go. We’ve got people staging in different areas throughout the counties and will be there as needed,” said Bender.
The storm is expected to stick around well into Thursday and bring with it heavy rain, windy conditions and significant snowfall in the higher elevations. Governor Tomblin issued a State of Emergency for the entire state Monday.
West Virginian’s are being urged by the Red Cross to stay in contact with their area news for information regarding shelters.
“Stay in touch with your local area and as soon as we have the information we are trying to get it out to the media specifically in those regions and then also statewide so residents can have easy access to the information,” said Bender.
The Red Cross expects the need for shelters to rise in West Virginia as the storm continues over the next couple days.