Glen Ellyn Disaster Volunteer Heads to Saipan to Assist With Relief Efforts

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With less than 48 hours notice, Lee Gramas of Glen Ellyn packed his bags and prepared to travel to Saipan, a small island in the western Pacific Ocean, to join relief efforts following a typhoon.

Gramas, a disaster volunteer with the American Red Cross, is among a group of trained volunteers called to oversee field operations, according to an American Red Cross press release. The self-employed contractor received the call to deploy Sunday evening.

“When disaster strikes, you don’t think twice, you say ‘yes’ and go where help is needed – if it’s a fire down the street or a typhoon halfway around the world,” Gramas said.

Typhoon Soudelor slammed into the small island of Saipan, located south of Gaum, with winds of 105 mph late Sunday and early Monday. No one was killed but at least 10 have been injured and widespread damage has been reported , according to USA Today.

Gramas has been deployed to numerous national disasters including Superstorm Sandy, Hurricane Isaac, and the Colorado floods in 2013 during his five years as a Red Cross volunteer. Locally, he helped lead the response efforts for the recent tornadoes in Northern Illinois in April and June, in addition responding to dozens of home fires in Chicago and surrounding communities.

The American Red Cross is part of the disaster relief efforts on Saipan, which is a commonwealth of the United States in the Northern Mariana Islands.

Hundreds of Saipan residents are in shelters after high winds and flooding damaged homes. Access to some roads remains impassable, and power and water services are also challenging relief operations.

Gramas joins Dave Pattengale, a 20-year Red Cross veteran in disaster services for the Chicago & Northern Illinois region, and a team of a half dozen other disaster specialists from southern and central Illinois. The team will be deployed for about two weeks.

Source: American Red Cross press release