Red Cross emergency response boss praises Lincolnshire community and volunteers for support to residents during flooding

For immediate release: Sunday 16 June, 2019
For further info & interviews Alice Owen
Contact number Out of hours media number: 07710 391703
 
Red Cross emergency response boss praises Lincolnshire community and volunteers for support to residents during flooding

British Red Cross head of crisis response Simon Lewis has praised the hard work and resilience of volunteers throughout Lincolnshire for their incredible team effort in helping people affected by this week’s flooding.
 
The British Red Cross has emergency response volunteers on the ground in the community hub in Wainfleet, and experienced emergency response officers working in collaboration with other voluntary and community organisations alongside police, fire, health and district and local councils to offer the best support
 
Red Cross volunteers are continuing to give practical help and emotional support to people in the community hub. Red Cross research shows the three most important things for people in a crisis situation are;
 
• addressing immediate practical needs
• communicating essential information
• providing mental health and psychosocial support
 
British Red Cross Emergency response officer Anita Moore said: “We have a great team of volunteers in Lincolnshire and they’re providing both practical and emotional support to those affected, in the community hub in Wainfleet.
 
“Another important role for us is in Strategic Command, coordinating the other voluntary organisations like Lincolnshire 4x4 group, Lincolnshire community assistance team (LCAT – another 4x4 group), Lives – a first aid community responder group and Lincolnshire Faith Responders, who are all doing a great job as part of this joint response.
 
“The community has really rallied together. We and others have worked with communities in the area to prepare for flooding, so communities can set up safe places themselves in the early stages of an emergency like this and although this is tough for everyone affected, that preparation and resilience is paying off.
 
“The Red Cross volunteers will remain on hand to provide support for as long as needed, and we have others on standby should more help be needed, but we’ve got our fingers crossed that we won’t be.”
 
British Red Cross head of emergency response Simon Lewis says:
“It’s times like these that we see the value of local people, including our own volunteers and those from other voluntary and community groups, working together and being at the heart of that response. I would like to commend everyone involved for the amazing team effort in support of the people who have been affected.”
 
The Red Cross responds to an emergency in the UK approximately every four hours. The charity and its volunteers carry out first aid, run rest centres and provide safe spaces where they offer emotional and practical support. Every year, it helps around half a million people in the UK to prepare for, respond to and recover from a crisis. It believes greater collaboration between different agencies and charities, as well as sharing local knowledge and insights, will help meet the wide range of individual needs in a crisis.
 
For anyone affected by this emergency, here is some information that could help;
 
• Explore the Red Cross’ top tips on giving emotional support in an emergency
• Download our free Emergency and First Aid apps available in the Apple App Store and Google Play.
  
ENDS
 
Notes to editors
 
For urgent out of hours media enquiries please contact 07710 391703 or email press@redcross.org.uk

The British Red Cross helps people in crisis, whoever and wherever they are. We are part of a global voluntary network, responding to conflicts, natural disasters and individual emergencies. We enable vulnerable people in the UK and overseas to prepare for and withstand emergencies in their own communities. And when the crisis is over, we help them to recover and move on with their lives. www.redcross.org.uk  
Follow us @BritishRedCross @RedCrossPolicy