New Milford Woman to Help with Tropical Storm Barry

NEW MILFORD, CT — A local woman is deploying with the American Red Cross in advance of Tropical Storm Barry.

Linda Wrenn of New Milford joins volunteers John Donatello Niantic and Hugo Adams from East Haddam as part of a local contingent flying down to the Gulf Coast in support of Red Cross sheltering operations.

The powerful storm headed to the Gulf Coast is predicted to bring strong winds, as much as 20 inches of rain and a dangerous storm surge to the region through the weekend. The American Red Cross is preparing to respond as necessary and offers steps people can take to be ready for this severe weather.

The Red Cross has disaster workers standing by, and is pre-positioning relief supplies in Louisiana, Texas, and other coastal communities for evacuation centers and sheltering operations after the storm makes landfall. Red Cross emergency response vehicles are also on alert.

The exact track of the storm is still uncertain but could affect communities from Texas to Florida and areas inland. Tropical storm and hurricane watches are already issued for parts of Louisiana where mandatory and voluntary evacuations have been ordered in areas along the coast.

Officials in New Orleans and surrounding parishes are concerned about water going over several levees, causing flooding in areas which have already received several inches of rain this week.