As Hurricane Helene barreled through the Southeast, San Diegans got ready to step in and help, reports NBC 7’s Jeanette Quezada.
California deployed 151 firefighters and support from across the state Friday, including members of San Diego Fire Rescue.
The storm made landfall Thursday night as a Category 4 hurricane, killing dozens of people across four states and causing widespread damage.
Hurrican Helene
Forty-six emergency personnel from the Search and Rescue Task Force 8 Team departed for North Carolina in semi-trucks loaded with equipment to use in their mission on Friday.
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“The Red Cross is, of course, responding after the devastating effects of Hurricane Helene,” said Brianna Kelly of the American Red Cross of Southern California.
Kelly said the Red Cross has teams on the ground with relief supplies and emergency response vehicles providing support before, during and after the storm. She said four of the volunteers are from the Southern California Region, including a San Diegan.
“We had a lot of people, Red Crossers from Southern California as well as across the country, who were prepositioned ahead of the storm, along with relief supplies and emergency response vehicles,” Kelly said.
Kelly said many of the crews are assisting with sheltering people who have been displaced by the storm.
“Right now, on the ground, the Red Cross is supporting about 140 shelters that are currently open,” Kelly said.
As the Red Cross gets a clearer scope of the devastation, Kelly anticipates more help will be needed in the days ahead.
“Right now, we’re calling down our list of volunteers to see who is available, so we are going to be deploying a number in the days and weeks to come,” Kelly said.
A spokesperson with SDG&E told NBC 7 that as of Friday, it has have not received mutual aid requests.
