Disasters: Relief & Updates

 

Find information here on recent environmental disasters and crises, with links to credible organizations that are coordinating any on-going relief and rescue efforts. Please submit corrections, updates, and on-the-ground reports to: teke@thecontributor.com 

 

Red Cross CEO Dodges Congressional Questions About Cuts Around the Country

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Justin Elliott for ProPublica
February 25, 2016 - 9:58am
Red Cross CEO Dodges Congressional Questions About Cuts Around the Country
The American Red Cross has failed to answer a congressman’s questions about deep cuts the charity has made to staff and local offices. Rep. Bennie Thompson, the ranking member of the House homeland security committee, sent the charity a long list of questions after ProPublica recently revealed the cuts and detailed how they have eroded the Red Cross’ ability to respond to even modest disasters.
origin Author: 
Justin Elliott
origin Blog: 
ProPublica

Congressman Presses Red Cross CEO For Answers

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Justin Elliott for ProPublica
December 29, 2015 - 3:44pm
Congressman Presses Red Cross CEO For Answers
Rep. Bennie Thompson said it is “critical” for the Red Cross to act quickly in response to problems reported by ProPublica. A key congressman who sits on a committee that oversees the American Red Cross is pressing the group’s chief executive for information about how layoffs and other cuts have affected its ability to respond to disasters
origin Author: 
Justin Elliott
origin Blog: 
ProPublica

‘American Red Cross Sunshine Act’ Would Open Charity to Outside Scrutiny

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Justin Elliott for ProPublica
September 16, 2015 - 11:50am
‘American Red Cross Sunshine Act’ Would Open Charity to Outside Scrutiny
Federal legislation is being unveiled today that would force the American Red Cross to do something that it has repeatedly resisted: open its books and operations to outside scrutiny.
origin Author: 
Justin Elliott
origin Blog: 
ProPublica

Red Cross Disaster: CEO Tried to Kill Government Investigation

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Justin Elliott for ProPublica
August 17, 2015 - 6:52am
Red Cross Disaster: CEO Tried to Kill Government Investigation
American Red Cross CEO Gail McGovern has long portrayed her organization as a beacon of openness, once declaring “we made a commitment that we want to lead the effort in transparency.” But when the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, opened an inquiry last year into the Red Cross’ disaster work, McGovern tried to get it killed behind the scenes.
origin Author: 
Justin Elliott
origin Blog: 
ProPublica

Confidential Documents: Red Cross Itself May Not Know How Millions Donated for Haiti Were Spent

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propublica for ProPublica
July 21, 2015 - 12:00pm
Confidential Documents: Red Cross Itself May Not Know How Millions Donated for Haiti Were Spent
The American Red Cross is under pressure this week to answer detailed questions from Congress about the spending of nearly half a billion dollars it raised after the 2010 Haiti earthquake. But internal documents newly obtained by ProPublica and NPR call into question whether the Red Cross itself has an accurate accounting of how money was spent.
origin Blog: 
ProPublica

How Cellphone Companies Have Resisted Rules for Disasters

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Cora Currier for ProPublica
December 3, 2012 - 12:30pm
How Cellphone Companies Have Resisted Rules for Disasters
In a natural disaster or other emergency, one of the first things you're likely to reach for is your cellphone. Landlines are disappearing. More than 30 percent of American households now rely exclusively on cellphones.
origin Author: 
Cora Currier
origin Blog: 
ProPublica

NY Governor Cuomo Designates $27M in Disaster Relief Funds to Provide Temporary Jobs to the Displaced

Chaz Bolte for We Party Patriots
November 28, 2012 - 12:30pm
NY Governor Cuomo Designates $27M in Disaster Relief Funds to Provide Temporary Jobs to the Displaced
New York Governor and possible 2016 Presidential Candidate Andrew Cuomo is designating part of the state’s $27.7 million in disaster relief funds to provide temporary jobs for those who became unemployed because of the Hurricane Sandy.
The grant is being used to hire additional clean up help in the Bronx, Kings, Nassau, New York, Orange, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester. The National Emergency Grant will provide temporary jobs for 5,000 workers.
origin Author: 
Chaz Bolte
origin Blog: 
We Party Patriots

Tons Of Trash From Hurricane Sandy

UpTakeVideo for The UpTake
November 27, 2012 - 12:00pm
Superstorm Sandy left enough debris across New York to fill three football stadiums. Now the Army Corps of Engineers is working to clean it up.
origin Author: 
UpTakeVideo
origin Blog: 
The UpTake

Occupy Sandy Builds on Longstanding Progressive Tradition

Mark Naison for LA Progressive
November 14, 2012 - 9:30am
Some people were shocked when Occupy Wall Street — a protest movement that aimed to expose the excessive power of the financial industry and its corrupting influence on government — suddenly came to life through grassroots efforts to bring relief to individuals and communities devastated by Hurricane Sandy.
origin Author: 
Mark Naison
origin Blog: 
LA Progressive

Homeless Family Population Soars By 10% After Sandy

Charley James for LA Progressive
November 12, 2012 - 2:03pm
Thanks to Sandy, November saw the ranks of the homeless surge all along the East Coast, from North Carolina to Massachusetts. And despite massive relief efforts by every level of government and countless aid agencies, more than a week after the storm ended tens of thousands of families...
origin Author: 
Charley James
origin Blog: 
LA Progressive

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