The American Red Cross is in need of financial relief following a series of weather-related disasters.

Natural disasters such as Hurricane Isabel left thousands of Americans without food and shelter this year, and the American Red Cross without money.

Anita Cosego, director of Charleston’s East-Central Illinois Red Cross chapter, said the best way to help is by donating to the disaster relief fund.

That fund is now “virtually empty,” according to Kara Bunte, spokesperson for the Red Cross’ national headquarters.

“In the last fiscal year, June 30, 2002 to June 30, 2003, we spent $114.3 million dollars responding to approximately 67,000 disasters,” she said. “We only raised 39.5 million dollars.”

Bunte said the agency is working out of its general fund to pay expenses for supplying food, clothing, shelter and hygiene products. Currently, the Red Cross is sheltering more than 71,000 people and 11,000 workers on the east coast where Hurricane Isabel hit land.

The Associated Press reported 38 deaths related to Isabel and more than 1.8 million people left at least temporarily without power in North Carolina, Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware.

North Carolina, Virginia and Delaware have been officially declared federal disaster areas by President George W. Bush.

Bunte said the Red Cross has set up 367 shelters and served more than 150,000 meals to Isabel’s victims.

“Over the past year our disaster relief fund has been depleted and is at a critical low level,” Bunte said.

Red Cross has been relieving victims of typhoons, hurricanes and other less publicized disasters in the United States and its territories, despite poor finances.

“Whether or not the media is there covering a storm, the Red Cross is there,” Bunte said.

Volunteers travel from across the country to join in disaster relief efforts.

Bunte said 155 emergency response vehicles from across the nation are stationed in the affected states.

“We use the ERV’s in natural disaster relief operations. We load them with meals and relief kits for mass care.”

Cosega said locally trained volunteers are unable to assist east coast victims because it requires a three-week stay.

“The best thing people here can do is donate money,” she said. To ease donating efforts, the organization is offering a Coinstar program.

“Donors can drop off spare cash in Coinstar machines at participating stores throughout the country,” Bunte said.

Coinstar machines are available at Champaign and Urbana Schnuck’s and County Market stores. Volunteers are also welcome following the Red Cross training program and Bunte said blood donations are needed in times of disaster as well.

“When you have a disaster like Isabel, donors from an entire portion of the country aren’t donating, so we need other regions to give blood.”

For more information, call the Red Cross at (800)HELPNOW (435-7669).

Donations can be sent to The American Red Cross PO Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013, or submitted online at www.redcross.org.

City Editor Carly Mullady can be reached at [email protected].