Following the stress of a second Flood Warning in one week and the mandatory evacuations in the Myers Grove area last night, American Red Cross disaster response in Orange and Sullivan Counties continues into its seventh day.

Approximately sixty Red Cross staff and volunteers, joined by several licensed Mental Health Counselors, from the Orange-Sullivan area, as well as Putnam, Nassau, Westchester Counties and New York City have participated in the relief operation that has been named a Red Cross Level IV Disaster.

In Orange County, victims of the flooding are being assisted in the Red Cross Service Center at 150 Pike Street, Port Jervis. There, family services caseworkers will continue to meet with people in need of emergency assistance. The Center is open today, April 8, from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. In Sullivan County, the Service Center has been closed and new cases, as well as case follow-ups, will be handled by individual outreach teams.

Since the flooding began, the Red Cross has sheltered 312 people, distributed nearly 1,000 meals and provided emergency assistance, including temporary housing, food, clothing, cleaning supplies and emotional support to hundreds of people from the 435 homes affected throughout Orange/Sullivan Counties. Specialized Red Cross clean-up kits and disaster relief supplies will be made available to those whose homes have been affected by the recent floods.

It is anticipated many residents may need further assistance with necessities such as food, clothing and medication. As residents begin to return to their homes, arrangements will be made to ensure that those affected have access to any Red Cross assistance they may need. People displaced by the North Eastern flooding who are in need of emergency assistance should contact the Red Cross at 1-877 RED-CROSS.