Red Cross Web site helps track fire victims

The American Red Cross has a Web site in place for people who have been affected by a disaster to register themselves as “safe and well.” The Red Cross is urging those in Southern California who have or will evacuate to register themselves on the Red Cross Safe and Well Web site. On this site, people can leave a status message for their loved ones, letting them know their general location and well-being.

The site can be accessed via redcross.org.

Using the phone number or complete home address of the person affected by the disaster, viewers can search the list of those who have self-registered and view any “safe and well” messages that may have been left by loved ones. For those in a disaster area without access to a computer, a Red Cross operator can help the person register by calling 800-RED CROSS. To search for someone, a pre-disaster phone number (home, work or cell) or a complete home address must be entered in order to search for the “safe and well” messages left by your family or friends.

The American Red Cross Safe and Well Web site provides a way for individuals affected by a disaster to list themselves as “safe and well.” However, viewers cannot find out where someone is located by using this site. When delivering disaster relief services, the American Red Cross is guided by strict privacy and confidentiality policies. These guidelines limit the kinds of personal and location information collected by the Red Cross that can be made available to the public.

If a loved one is not listed, viewers can continue searching the site throughout the duration of the disaster. In addition to searching this Web site, also consider the Contact Loved Ones voice message service (www.contactlovedones.org) at 866-782-6682. If you have lost contact with your family and friends, Contact Loved Ones provides a free voice message service, accessible from any phone, to reestablish contact between those affected by a disaster and their loved ones and friends. The Safe and Well Web site facilitates communication from inside the disaster affected areas to family members outside the disaster areas. Concerned loved ones outside the disaster area cannot register through this Web site that they are looking for a loved one.

To find out the status of someone visiting the United States from another country or a foreign national living in the United States, please contact the respective consular office or embassy in the United States. Those individuals were encouraged to contact these organizations with their well-being. Contact information for foreign consular offices in the United States can be found at www.state.gov/s/cpr/rls/fco/. Contact information for foreign embassies in the United States can be found at www.embassy.org/embassies/

If a family member does not live in the United States, but has been traveling in the disaster-affected area, people can enter their international phone number to search the Safe and Well List.

In the last 24 hours, 804 people have registered on line as “safe and well.”