The Coolidge examiner., 1934-11-09

erty damage. then u u that
e. * ~ those messengers OF mercy Amer.
lean Red Cross officials and WORKERS. mobilize
swiftly aud speed 10 the place where they are
most needed
IL vas only few weeks ago that word flashed
down from the north that Ere had swept Nome
Alaska, leaving that town. once famed as a gold
camp but now n modern American city heap
Of nshes Within a few hours after the receipt
of this neWS Red Cross relief director WAS
stepping into an airplane at san Francisco aud
few minutes later be was wlnslng his way
toward the stricken city
when the Inflated MORO Castle burst into
flames or the coast OF New Jersey. Red Cross
disaster units In coastal chapters os that state
Immediately rallied 10 the work o. rescue. the
care of survivors and the reunlting Of separated
families. relatives and friends More than
score of nurses were summoned from their beds
In the chill dawn 10 take up long viglls on board
rescue vessels. Ia hospitals. az piers and at
moTgues There they mlnlsiered 10 sufferers
from Injuries. exposure. shock and grief
Andyet these spectacular examples were only two
ot the Is disaster Jobs In the continental United
States In which the Red Cross was active during
the past year. Add TO these assistance given
IN - insnlar and foreign catasrophes and the
aggregate Is l03-Just about the average for an
organization mat has been shouldering this sort
OF task through more than half century
No part OF the United States escaped some
sort Of disaster. there being total OF les coun.
ties In which the Red Cross assisted 10000 vic
Tins Tornadoes and nres were the leading
agencies OF destruction with % cases OF each
necessitating Red Cross relief work
Besides these. IL hoods-one OF which took
The life Of Red Cross relief worker on duty
swept down out OF the bills and forests 10 llft
houses from their foundations 10 destroy crops
and live stock, and to send refugees scurrylng to
higher points. Tropical storms hung up a new
record for frequency within a single year and
for the first time In a hundred years a hurri-
cane starting in the West Indies whipped with
undimlnshed force as far north as the Virginia
coast
There were also epldemics. cyclones. explc-
sions hail storms. a typhoon. an earthquake. a
cloudburst and other emergencies which acted
10 bring the Red Cross with shelter. food. medl.
cal supplies. nurses disqualification and rehablil
tatlon programs
In the highest state OF disaster preparedness
in history, the Red Cross introduced something
new when IL conducted IS disaster Institutes al
strategic points In particularly vulnerable zones
Veteran disaster workers schooled local chapter
officers. community leaders police fire and
health officials In the surveying OF hazards and
organizing OF relief. In the case OF a number OF
approaching storms. disaster experts from ma
uonal Red Cross headquarters rushed to the
eNthc AtufA even Aags IN advance or the
calamity. saving many lives by the precautions
they invoked
Members Of the Red Cross nursing reserve.
public health nurses. home hygiene instructors
continued as one OF the nations first lines of
health defense. More than $4,000 nurses are on
the active list OF the reserve. ready to respond
10 calls from army. navy or Red Cross disaster
service.
Several were dispatched TO a North Carolina
community stricken BY pernicious tropical
malaria. Others were sent TO cope with a ty-
phod epidemic. Still others performed heroic
work in connection with a forest fire in a Cali
fornia canyon. To first aid station in connec-
tion with convention Of Spansh-American war
veterans was assigned another group And these
are only few instances from record Of varied
and numerous services given by this nursing
army which is always available for duty
Some $50 public health nurses were regularly
employed BY 424 Red Cross chapters. for the
most part In rural territory. They made more
than a million visits In line Of duty-gying