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ROBIN ERICKSON Director of Communications
PHONE (401) 831-7700 x101 E-MAIL [email protected]
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Thursday, February 6, 2003 Red Cross Volunteers "Playing the Public" For
Amber Alert Exercise -- Scattered Across the State, Making Phone Calls to Various Hotlines
A dozen American Red Cross of Rhode Island disaster volunteers are "playing the public" this morning as
part of the Rhode Island State Police exercise of "Amber Alert."
Scattered across Rhode Island, the volunteers are making phone calls to "*SP", the
State Police hotline, "46-AMBER", the Amber Alert hotline, Rhode Island's "9-1-1" and participating local police agencies.
"Each volunteer has an imaginary "scenario" that they are sharing with the state
police officer, or emergency worker who takes the call, " Nick Logothets, Director of Emergency Services for the American Red Cross of Rhode Island, said. "By placing
these calls, we are helping police test the flow of information and handle various situations that might occur during an Amber Alert."
Logothets says in the event of a real activation of an Amber Alert, the Red Cross
would get involved if the operation became large and on-going. He says volunteers would provide meals, transportation and other assistance to authorities, family members and others involved in the operation.
"The mission of the American Red Cross is to prevent, prepare for and respond to
emergencies," Logothets says. "We are proud to be lending a hand to the Rhode Island State Police as they practice the Amber Alert system today."
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