Mayor praises volunteers - The Worcester Observer

Mayor praises volunteers

Worcester Editorial 16th Jan, 2019   0

MAYOR of Worcester Coun Jabba Riaz visited British Red Cross volunteers who support people affected by floods and fires in Hereford and Worcester including some who travelled to London to support survivors of the Grenfell disaster.

He visited the fire station in Malvern, where the service’s specially-adapted vehicle is based.

The vehicle contains clothing, refreshments and information on how to make an insurance claim if you’ve lost all your paperwork in a flood or fire.

Retired firefighter Mel Turbutt, from Bewdley, who began volunteering for the service six years ago, said: “The Mayor was genuinely interested in how we help people. As well as supporting people in Hereford and Worcester, I was one of the volunteers who supported survivors after Grenfell.




“I was at the rest centre recording survivors’ details and signposting them to any support they needed. When I returned some of them recognised me and said how much they appreciated my support.”

As a result of his volunteering efforts, Mel was awarded the Henry Dunant Medal, the highest honour the Red Cross can give its members.


Martin Hookins, a retired social worker from Malvern, was also awarded the Henry Dunant Medal for supporting Grenfell survivors. He became a Red Cross volunteer three years ago. He said: “The Mayor was very keen to do anything he could to raise the profile of our service.

“I love the fact that I’m doing something positive in the community. It’s great to be able to work with people from such diverse backgrounds.”

Lisa Allsopp, emergency response officer for the British Red Cross in Hereford and Worcester, said: “Our volunteers are available 24 hours a day seven days a week. We can be called out by local authorities, utility companies and emergency services to provide practical and emotional support to people affected by house fires, power outages and water shortages.

“We recently supported people at a rest centre following a police operation to recover victims of human trafficking.

In November we supported people in Bewdley evacuated after a gas leak. When it snowed last February we used our vehicle to drive midwives around rural areas to visit expectant and new mothers.”

The British Red Cross responds to a UK emergency every four hours. We help people prepare for, cope with and recover from crises.

Visit www.redcross.org.uk/volunteer for more

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