Red Cross opens inquiry line for concerned relatives
29 June 2007
Australian Red Cross has opened the State Inquiry Centre on behalf of Victoria Police so that people looking for their loved ones, evacuated after flooding in Gippsland, can call in to check on their wellbeing.
Concerned friends and relatives can call 1800 727 077 to lodge an inquiry which can then be matched with the registrations of evacuees, taken at the four relief centres operating across Gippsland.
More than 150 evacuees have registered with the National Registration and Inquiry System, many at their local relief centre.
Red Cross is now manning relief centres in Sale, Bairnsdale, Lakes Entrance and Paynesville, where volunteers are caring for evacuees providing first aid and meals and taking registrations.
Around 25 people were accommodated by Red Cross, mostly at relief centres, after they were evacuated and had nowhere else to take shelter. Despite the ordeal, Red Cross volunteer John Patterson, said that people at the Paynesville relief centre were in good spirits.
'We're taking good care of people,' said Mr Patterson. 'We've got the local Lions Club cooking up meals, the East Gippsland Shire has brought in some generators as back-up if the power goes out and it's quite cosy here.'
The relief centres also serve as information and marshalling points for anyone whose home is affected by the flooding. Group Manager of Australian Red Cross' Victorian Operations, Máiréad Doyle, encouraged people who are evacuating to register at their relief centre so that there is an accurate record of the movement of affected residents.
'Even if you have somewhere else to go I'd encourage you to register,' said Ms Doyle. 'Not only does the registration system allows concerned friends and relatives to check on your wellbeing but it ensures that resources are properly directed during this emergency period and in the recovery phase following.'
In addition to assisting residents, Red Cross has also been called upon to provide meals to emergency services workers cleaning up after storm damage.
Red Cross has a long history, both internationally and locally, of assisting people affected by emergencies.
Many of the volunteers active today are the same ones that assisted their communities during bushfires earlier this year. At that time the Australian Red Cross emergency effort ran 24 hours a day.
