Report:Red Cross left volunteers at Republican National Convention in Tampa instead of helping Isaac

[Tony_FLADEM]

TAMPA — Despite receiving millions of dollars in donations, the Red Cross botched recovery efforts after Hurricane Isaac and Superstorm Sandy and part of the problem revolved around the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, an investigation by ProPublica and NPR has found.

The report, by Justin Elliott and Jesse Eisinger of ProPublica and Laura Sullivan of NPR, says:

The Red Cross botched key elements of its mission after Sandy and Isaac, leaving behind a trail of unmet needs and acrimony, according to an investigation by ProPublica and NPR. The charity's shortcomings were detailed in confidential reports and internal emails, as well as accounts from current and former disaster relief specialists.

What's more, Red Cross officials at national headquarters in Washington, D.C. compounded the charity's inability to provide relief by "diverting assets for public relations purposes," as one internal report puts it. Distribution of relief supplies, the report said, was "politically driven."

Isaac entered the Gulf of Mexico on Aug. 27, 2012, and immediately caused concern in Tampa because it was the host city for the Republican National Convention. Thousands of delegates, politicians and journalists had flooded into the city for the event. According to the ProPublica/NPR report, hundreds of Red Cross volunteers were in Tampa, too.

http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/national/report-red-cross-left-volunteers-at-republican-national-convention-in/2204194

[hollysmom]

1. They have always been a republican charity.