Hurricane Gustav may be gone, but some evacuees still remain in Opelika, and the local Red Cross needs help housing them.
If anything, the number of people staying in shelters is growing, Lee County Red Cross Director Jennifer Ryan said Thursday. Some of those who had signed in had only been eating at the shelters. Now, more are sleeping there, too.
“I think the ones in hotels are deciding they don’t have the money for that anymore or they might need to save for going-home expenses,” Ryan said.
With 76 housed at the shelter at Southern Union Community College and 115 at Covington Recreation Center in Opelika, the Red Cross needs volunteers and donations, Ryan said.
“Even if they can only do a couple hours a week, it helps give rest to those who have been working,” Ryan said.
The chapter funds its operations locally and needs donations to help house and feed people, both now and in the future, she said.
Ryan said she was afraid that with the storm gone, people were forgetting about the evacuees.
“We had a lot of people say, ‘The storm’s passed, it’s over.’ They don’t realize we still need volunteers,” Ryan said. “We had a lot of volunteers turn out the first couple of days, but it’s starting to dwindle. So, we need help.”
To donate time, funds or blood, call the Lee County Red Cross at 749-9981 or visit www.leeredcross.org.
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