A Tradition of Aid

According to Robert Wingate, a spokesperson for the ARC of Greater New York, new changes in local chapter operations won’t affect the flow of aid to people in need.
The ARC said that on average Red Cross expenses per household in Queens are higher than in any other borough for disaster relief.
In 1997, the more than 500 Queens volunteers responded to 611 emergencies in Queens. The agency provided $520,441 in direct aid to more than 1,500 disaster victims in Queens in 1997 alone.
Another feature of local Red Cross operations has been the use of volunteers on the Disaster Action team. This unit responded to dozens of fires, helped hundred of evacuees in Manhattan after the Times Square evacuation in July and participated in major disaster drills.
The ARC said Queens volunteers also helped victims of floods in Springfield Gardens and Cambria Heights. The Red Cross also arranged for housing and aid for dozens of families after the evacuation of the Vista Towers building in Flushing in September, 1997.