The American Red Cross is working around the clock along the Gulf Coast to help the thousands of people whose lives have been devastated by Hurricane Harvey.

Thousands of people have been forced to leave their flooded homes, losing everything they own, and more rain and flooding is expected throughout the week. It is anticipated that many more families will be impacted.Hundreds of Red Cross volunteers from all over the country are on the ground, working to provide safe shelter and comfort to people impacted by this devastating storm. A dozen of those volunteers are from the Eastern Pennsylvania Region. In addition, three emergency response vehicles with the capacity to feed hundreds of people were dispatched to the area.Dr. Joel N. Myers, founder, president and chairman of AccuWeather, stated, "This will be the worst natural disaster in American history. The economy's impact, by the time its total destruction is completed, will approach $160 billion, which is similar to the combined effect of Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy."He added, "The disaster is just beginning in certain areas. Parts of Houston, the United States' fourth-largest city will be uninhabitable for weeks and possibly months due to water damage, mold, disease-ridden water and all that will follow this 1,000-year flood." The worst flooding from Harvey is yet to come as rivers and bayous continue to rise in Texas with additional levees at risk for breaches and failures.How you can helpUnfortunately, collecting and sending food, clothing and other household items often does more harm than good. It takes time and money to store, sort, clean and distribute donated items, which diverts limited time and resources away from helping those most affected. Instead, the best way to support disaster victims is with a financial donation.The Red Cross depends on financial donations to be able to provide disaster relief immediately. Help people affected by Hurricane Harvey by visiting redcross.org, calling 800-RED CROSS or texting the word HARVEY to 90999 to make a $10 donation.Donate bloodBoth the Red Cross and Miller-Keystone Blood Center are accepting blood donations to bolster blood supplies in the Texas region ravaged by Harvey."Over the past several days, Harvey has caused mass destruction and forced evacuations throughout Houston and the surrounding region," said Debra Otto, Director of Donor Resources for Miller-Keystone. "This is preventing blood centers in the path of the storm from collecting blood supplies necessary for lifesaving transfusions at hospitals based in and around the Houston community."Otto said blood centers across the nation, including Miller-Keystone Blood Center, are working with America's Blood Centers and The Community Blood Centers' Exchange to support blood supplies in Texas at this time. Other blood centers in Texas are serving as blood depots to receive shipments from across the U.S., and Health and Human Services is arranging transportation into the Houston area for blood products.Otto urged all eligible donors - and particularly platelet donors, O-negative whole blood donors and AB plasma donors - to make an appointment. Platelets are critical to support many patients, especially those on chemotherapy, while type O-negative blood and AB plasma can be safely transfused to anyone regardless of blood type, and is frequently used in emergency situations.To schedule an appointment at any MKBC donor center call 800-223-6667. Individuals may also visit the MKBC's website at

donor.GIVEaPINT.org/donor/schedules/zip for the most up-to-date listing of blood drives in their community.To find a Red Cross blood drive, visit

http://www.redcross.org/give-blood.