RED CROSS ENDS YEAR SETTING MANY DISASTER RECORDS

With disaster after disaster hitting Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois, 1993 turned out to be a record-breaking year for the American Red Cross.

"It has been a record-breaking year, not only in how many disasters we had but also the magnitude of the disasters," said Kim Groves, chairman of the board of the local Red Cross. "These are not records we ever care to break again."

Locally, Red Cross flood relief efforts cost over $1 million. Nationally, Red Cross costs swelled to $40 million.

Locally 1,320 families received assistance, 333,384 meals were served and over 1,000 people volunteered to help; 148 people utilized the Red Cross's seven regional shelters, 123 people were injured, one hospitalized, and 5,209 people came to the American Red Cross asking for mental health counseling.

Kim Groves, chairman of the board for the local Red Cross chapter, said, "It has been a year of exceptions and the unexpected. Before one disaster is complete, we have to be prepared to face another."

Ron MacCubbin, director of emergency services for the chapter, said, "We've been on disaster work since the June 4 wind storm. We went from that to the summer floods and then to the fall floods and then to the flash floods and tornadoes.

"It's unusual for any one chapter to have any major national-level disasters in any one year let alone so many," he said.

Over $1 million was spent in the local area on summer flood assistance, Groves said.

The Heartland Cares telethon, conducted by KFVS-TV, generated $150,000 in donations. Another $71,300 was raised by the Red Cross through individual donations. The $221,400 raised locally was applied to the million dollar local expenditure. The balance was made up through national Red Cross donations.

Groves explained: "During disasters the national comes in with reinforcements. The Red Cross cannot take in locally enough money to take care of expenditures. Other Red Cross chapters across the country collect money to help pay for the disaster at hand."

Over the years, Cape Girardeau has donated money to numerous disasters in other parts of the country.

More than 1,000 volunteers came out to help flood victims, including Red Cross volunteers from across the country and even Canada.

"It was wonderful to see the community pitch in wherever needed. If we needed someone to go out and deliver meals, fill a sandbag or answer the telephone, people came out locally and from across the country to help their fellow neighbors."

The last items were removed from the disaster headquarters Thursday, but the work is not done.

"We're still working a lot of cases from the summer flood," MacCubbin said.

Flood victims who have exhausted assistance from FEMA are referred to the Red Cross for additional needs.

"If they still have unmet needs we set up a recovery program to get them back to their pre-disaster status. We work with all the community programs that may have resources," he explained.

The disasters have had some positive impact on the local Red Cross Chapter.

The magnitude of this summer's flooding forced the Red Cross to update its training procedures.

"This forced us to be better prepared for untrained volunteers," said Groves. "We have gone through the manuals and reconstructed them in layman's terms. Everything is color coded and walks you through step by step."

MacCubbin added, "We have identified tremendous human resources in our community -- people who want to help.

"We have developed real good relationship with people in the community and a good working relationship with other care-giving organizations."

The work of this past summer's flooding has not yet been completed, but Red Cross officials said they are gearing up for more flooding predicted this spring. Heavy spring rains are forecast, the ground remains saturated and many levees along the Mississippi have not been rebuilt.

"We just have to be prepared," said Groves.