Preparedness (Page 20)

Just recently I was vacationing in South America, waiting at a very busy bus station when I noticed a woman had dropped to the ground. I couldn’t tell for certain what had happened, but I understood there was a medical emergency. The first thing that popped into my head was: ‘what if she needs CPR?  I may be able to help.’

According to recent polling by the Red Cross, two thirds of Canadians say they have not taken steps to prepare in the event of a disaster, like a severe winter storm. Are you and your family prepared for a weather-related emergency?

This year’s World Disasters Report, released by International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), takes on a challenging theme of looking at how culture affects disaster risk reduction, and how disasters and risk influence culture.

Sebastien Jouffroy is a humanitarian worker for the Canadian Red Cross. He was deployed to the Philippines for one year and will send updates on his experiences throughout the mission. This is Sebastien’s most recent blog post from the Philippines

It’s 4 a.m. and I’m sleepy, groggy and sweating. It’s the third day in a row I have been up at this time to accompany Guyana Red Cross staff and volunteers to Jacklow, an isolated riverine community in Guyana. The community has been supported by the Guyana Red Cross to explore the vulnerabilities and capacities in their community.

Many parents feel uncomfortable leaving their child in the care of a young babysitter. If you are a parent who checks in several times a night to make sure everything is okay at home, you will feel more at ease during your evenings out by hiring a trained babysitter.

As part of a three-week in-store fundraising campaign in August to support local Red Cross disaster relief, Walmart Canada and the Canadian Red Cross teamed up for Build-a-Kit Challenge, to help inform as to what is needed to survive for the first 72 hours after a disaster strikes.