Hawaii wildfires

Bay Area American Red Cross volunteers head to Maui to help wildfire victims

Thursday, August 10, 2023

Bay Area American Red Cross heads to Maui to help wildfire victims

Bay Area members of the American Red Cross are being deployed to help those affected by the fires in Hawaii.

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Bay Area members of the American Red Cross are being deployed to help those affected by the fires in Hawaii.

The American Red Cross Northern California Coastal Region -- which encompasses 15 counties -- is sending eight people to Hawaii, said Hanna Malak, American Red Cross Northern California Coastal Region CEO.

Six left Thursday morning and two others were scheduled to leave later that day, he said, adding that the number could grow.

The devastating wildfires in Maui have forced thousands of people to evacuate.

Malak said their volunteers will be helping those affected by the fires with food, shelter, refilling prescriptions and mental health services.

"Unfortunately, we have a lot of experience with wildfires," Malak said. "So we know what it's like to shelter folks and what the needs are. Every situation's a little bit different, but our volunteers have had years and years of experience, unfortunately, but they do become experts in the field and the response efforts. So we're sending our best to help those in need."

More Red Cross volunteers are on standby.

"It's devastating," he said. "Our hearts go out to all those who are affected. There definitely is a great need and just glad and proud of the work of the Red Cross to be there to help people during their darkest hour."

If you want to help, Malak said you can sign up to be a volunteer on the website but you would need to get training.

He said the fastest way to help is by donating money. You can go to redcross.org, call 1-800-RED-CROSS or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

Right now, this is a general fund for disaster relief for the Red Cross.

For those interested in helping people specifically affected by the Hawaii Wildfires, we ask that they write "Hawaii Wildfires" in the memo line of a check and mail it with a completed donation form to the address on the form or to their local Red Cross chapter.