Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Usually, warm weather brings some relief from winter's increase in house fires, but a recent spate has drained local Red Cross resources.

"Seven in five days is an extraordinary number" said Bruce Rutter, CEO of the American Red Cross Rhode Island Chapter. It's double the usual rate for the start of warm weather, he said.

"We were hoping things would slow down, but I guess we're not out of the woods yet," Rutter said today. "This will make an already bad situation for us worse." The local Red Cross has spent its fire assistance budget for this fiscal year and is running a deficit.

Since Monday, Red Cross volunteers have responded to fires at a single-family home in Scituate, a multi-family home in North Kingstown on Tuesday, a group of students living together in North Kingstown on Wednesday, a three-family building in Newport, a single-family house in Warwick and one in Central Falls on Thursday, and a multi-family dwelling in Scituate early this morning.

From those fires, the Red Cross is helping 18 adults and 11 children with lodging, food and clothing, which it will also provide to this morning's fire victim after he is released from the hospital.

"You hear about flooding in North Dakota all over the news, " said Deb Ashe, local development manager, "but we're having our own quiet emergency right here, and no one knows about it."

To help, call (401) 831-7700, or visit the the Red Cross "Heroes" campaign Web site.

 Tags  Providence RI

Comments

Elizabeth said:

And WHY are we having so many house fires lately? Theories?

Link | March 27, 2009 3:27 PM
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