Michigan's Red Cross prepared to send volunteers to Joplin

The Red Cross of Washtenaw County is prepared to send volunteers to Joplin, Mo. where a tornado killed at least 117 people. The Red Cross chapter in Ann Arbor is already deploying one of its 150 volunteers to the disaster area.

Ashley Cieslinski is the Emergency Services Director of Washtenaw County’s Red Cross. She says Red Cross chapters across Michigan are prepared to help with relief efforts. 

"Within the Red Cross we work as a team so chapters rely on each other and we have a very strong network of volunteers to make sure that we can meet the needs of those that were affected."

Cieslinski says the need in Joplin is not too large to handle.

"When disasters occur, the resilience that comes fourth is pretty amazing, whether it’s a government agency, non-profit, churches in the area, everyone pulls together to make sure that people are taken care of and their community is supported."

The emergency services director says she expects to see more requests to deploy volunteers in the days to come.

Emily Fox- Michigan Radio Newsroom