Red Cross COVID-19 Changes

By John Palminteri, KEYT

In an area known for big disasters, The American Red Cross Central Coast Region has a new plan to be able to handle evacuees with adequate safety, spacing and sanitation to meet the COVID-19 conditions.

Regional Chief Executive Officer for the Central California Region of the American Red Cross, Tony Briggs says, “the idea is with COVID-19 to shelter in more locations with less people.”

That provides the necessary spacing during the coronavirus crisis.

The American Red Cross has a rapid response plan to its existing shelter deployment teams so anyone who arrives is cared for with a safe, sanitized site.

“We are going to be working with the county health to make sure people are screen properly before they come in. We are going to make sure that we are doing social distancing as far as making sure we are using six feet between cots. We are putting down markers to tell people where they can walk around the shelter,” said Briggs.