Many members of the EMS community are asking what they can do to help their fellow medics affected by Hurricane Katrina. As NAEMT members know, after 9-11, NAEMT established the EMS and Rescuer Relief Fund to collect money for the victims of the disaster. That fund remains operational.
NAEMT urges anyone who is able to make a financial donation to send a check to the NAEMT EMS and Rescuer Relief Fund c/o the NAEMT Headquarters, PO Box 1400, Clinton, MS 39060-1400. Credit card donations can be made by clicking http://relief.naemt.org/donate. Individual and corporate donations are welcomed and corporations are encouraged to match employee contributions. NAEMT has pledged to cover the operational costs of the fund, permitting all donations to the fund to be distributed in their entirety.
The money collected will be made available to EMS professionals who need help re-building their lives in the wake of the Hurricane Katrina. No decisions have been made yet as to precisely when and how the funds will be disseminated. After 9-11, NAEMT disseminated $107,553 to assist the families of EMS workers who died in the line of duty while responding to the terrorist attacks.
NAEMT has donated $25,000 to this fund from its general budget.
Many EMS workers and their families in the areas affected by the hurricane have lost their homes. NAEMT has created a database of housing opportunities for these people while their homes and communities are rebuilt.
If you have the ability to temporarily house an EMS worker and his/her family, please download a form to submit your information and the specific details and requirements of what you can offer (Form in MS Word, Form in pdf ). NAEMT needs people from around the country to respond immediately.
NAEMT will also be creating a database of EMS workers from the affected areas who are seeking housing. These people must be currently active and involved in EMS work as EMTs or paramedics. NAEMT will collect information from these people, conduct a background check and then match them with volunteers who available housing.
Firehouse.com has created a program to match fire and EMS services who want to help with fire and EMS services who have been impacted by the recent disaster.
For more information