Red Cross bringing assistance to Calcasieu and East Baton Rouge parishes

Lake Charles, LA (KPLC) - The Red Cross says they are assisting approximately 1,000 households within Calcasieu Parish and East Baton Rouge Parish.

Per Louisiana Regional Communications Director Stephanie Fox:

At this time, our teams are working to reach out to households that qualify for financial assistance. Across the state, primarily within East Baton Rouge and surrounding parishes as well in Calcasieu, our disaster assessment identified more than 1,000 households that sustained substantial damage and would qualify them for this assistance.

When it comes to disaster recovery, each resident or family will have unique needs. We assign a caseworker to navigate those individually and assess what their unique circumstances or challenges may be that we, or other community partners, may be able to support.

I absolutely encourage everyone to register their damage through the State of Louisiana (https://survey123.arcgis.com/share/36c861fc544f46b3817e4a244f7f05cf?fbclid=IwAR3vbdXG6pKaT8d2EJxXJU3wAdWMi3rYFq7zsYPFzAd97uLCjlHY0xP_wLg) and through FEMA. This will set folks up to reach the right people at the right agencies when the time comes. It is also important to note that even if residents registered with FEMA after Laura/Delta or the winter storm, this is a completely different incident and requires its own registration.

For residents who may not qualify for financial assistance, the Red Cross can still provide access to health, mental health, spiritual care and other types of resources. So we would ask those folks to call 1-800-Red Cross to speak to a member of the team.