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Lynn Felsch has been with the Tahoe Area Preparedness and Response team since 2005.
Ever wonder what happens when a family is displaced by a fire in its home, a tornado strikes a town or a wildfire leaves an entire neighborhood homeless?
What happens is that all of these people can count on the American Red Cross to help them.
Lynn Felsch is the Tahoe Area Preparedness and Response Manager for the American Red Cross. She is a 30-year resident and has been with the ARC since Hurricane Katrina devasted the United States in 2005.
“I took the training in Sacramento and then returned to my home in Tahoe,” said Felsch. “A year went by before I received a call from the Red Cross.”
Of course the call to Felsch arrived at midnight on Jan. 1 2006. She quickly heard about Highway 80 being closed in both directions and the need for shelter in Truckee to provide for the people stranded. Along with a church group in Truckee, The Red Cross provided shelter for the stranded motorists at the Sierra Mountain Middle School in Truckee.
“Over the two-night period, we served 300 people,” Felsch said. The first night the organization helped 200 people in need and the second night 100.
It was this experience that made Felsch realize the need to have more staff in the Tahoe area to help during a disaster. Immediately Felsch began recruiting and now has more than 30 volunteers trained in disaster procedures for both local and national disasters. And in 2007, the Red Cross assisted at both the Angora fire and Washoe fire at Lake Tahoe.
“I was on my way back to Tahoe from a wedding when I received the call about the Angora fire,” Felsch said.
The shelter set up by the Red Cross was opened within hours and remained open for eight days. The group not only provided shelter but served more than 10,000 meals and snacks to the families that lost their homes and to the responders, and it provided supplies such as clean-up kits, flashlights and work gloves.
The Red Cross opened another shelter in Tahoe City after the Washoe fire later in the same summer.
With funds received from the Angora fire the ARC has been able to add two additional disaster trailers for the Tahoe area to the two already in use. The ARC now has six trailers: one in Truckee that holds 100 cots, one in Incline with 100 cots, one in Tahoe Vista with 50 cots, one in Tahoe City with 50 cots, and two trailers with 50 cots each on South Shore. The funds also provided for a truck to pull the trailers when and where they are needed and an Emergency Response Vehicle.
The Emergency Response Vehicle can serve 1,000 meals a day. The ERV and Felsch just recently returned from Texas and the Hurricane Ike disaster where they fed 1,000 people a day.
“It is most fulfilling to help those people,” Felsch said.
But the ARC also responds to smaller disasters like when a family loses their home to a fire. They provide food, clothing and put the family up in a hotel.
The ARC will be at all of the SnowFest activities during the two weeks and encourages people to sign up to volunteer for the Tahoe disaster team. Training for the teams is provided by the ARC. They are also in need of people to teach first aid and help with educating school children. Anyone interested in becoming involved can contact Felsch at felschi@sacsierraredcross.org or at (530) 391-8234.
What happens is that all of these people can count on the American Red Cross to help them.
Lynn Felsch is the Tahoe Area Preparedness and Response Manager for the American Red Cross. She is a 30-year resident and has been with the ARC since Hurricane Katrina devasted the United States in 2005.
“I took the training in Sacramento and then returned to my home in Tahoe,” said Felsch. “A year went by before I received a call from the Red Cross.”
Of course the call to Felsch arrived at midnight on Jan. 1 2006. She quickly heard about Highway 80 being closed in both directions and the need for shelter in Truckee to provide for the people stranded. Along with a church group in Truckee, The Red Cross provided shelter for the stranded motorists at the Sierra Mountain Middle School in Truckee.
“Over the two-night period, we served 300 people,” Felsch said. The first night the organization helped 200 people in need and the second night 100.
It was this experience that made Felsch realize the need to have more staff in the Tahoe area to help during a disaster. Immediately Felsch began recruiting and now has more than 30 volunteers trained in disaster procedures for both local and national disasters. And in 2007, the Red Cross assisted at both the Angora fire and Washoe fire at Lake Tahoe.
“I was on my way back to Tahoe from a wedding when I received the call about the Angora fire,” Felsch said.
The shelter set up by the Red Cross was opened within hours and remained open for eight days. The group not only provided shelter but served more than 10,000 meals and snacks to the families that lost their homes and to the responders, and it provided supplies such as clean-up kits, flashlights and work gloves.
The Red Cross opened another shelter in Tahoe City after the Washoe fire later in the same summer.
With funds received from the Angora fire the ARC has been able to add two additional disaster trailers for the Tahoe area to the two already in use. The ARC now has six trailers: one in Truckee that holds 100 cots, one in Incline with 100 cots, one in Tahoe Vista with 50 cots, one in Tahoe City with 50 cots, and two trailers with 50 cots each on South Shore. The funds also provided for a truck to pull the trailers when and where they are needed and an Emergency Response Vehicle.
The Emergency Response Vehicle can serve 1,000 meals a day. The ERV and Felsch just recently returned from Texas and the Hurricane Ike disaster where they fed 1,000 people a day.
“It is most fulfilling to help those people,” Felsch said.
But the ARC also responds to smaller disasters like when a family loses their home to a fire. They provide food, clothing and put the family up in a hotel.
The ARC will be at all of the SnowFest activities during the two weeks and encourages people to sign up to volunteer for the Tahoe disaster team. Training for the teams is provided by the ARC. They are also in need of people to teach first aid and help with educating school children. Anyone interested in becoming involved can contact Felsch at felschi@sacsierraredcross.org or at (530) 391-8234.
