For Immediate Release
Tuesday, September 17, 1996
Media Advisory: New York City Workers to Travel to Puerto Rico to Assist with Hurricane "Relief Caravan"
New York —A group of New York City public employees, members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), will travel to Puerto Rico on Tuesday, September 17, to assist with clean-up efforts there in the wake of Hurricane Hortense. The volunteers are part of a week-long effort called the "relief caravan" that will distribute food, drinking water and clothing to those hardest hit by the hurricane.
The relief caravan was organized by the Puerto Rican radio station Sistema 102 F.M., WAPA-TV, and the Servidores Publicos Unidos de Puerto Rico (SPUPR), an affiliate of AFSCME. The union volunteers will arrive in Puerto Rico in time to join the relief caravan on Tuesday, September 17, and will continue their relief efforts throughout the week.
SPUPR/AFSCME, which represents some 2,000 public employees in Puerto Rico, has established a $10,000 grant to provide immediate relief to its members who sustained losses as a result of the hurricane. The union is also working with various disaster relief agencies -- including the American Red Cross, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) -- to provide assistance for hurricane survivors. Earlier this week, the union produced a series of public service announcements on what to do in the wake of the hurricane, and distributed a booklet that provided information on what to do before, during and after a flood.
| Event: | New York City public workers will arrive in Puerto Rico to join a "relief caravan" that will provide assistance to survivors of Hurricane Hortense. |
| Date: | Tuesday, September 17, 1996 (Continuing through Friday September 20) |
| Participants: |
Servidores Publicos Unidos de Puerto Rico (SPUPR/AFSCME) AFSCME New York District Council 37 AFSCME District Council 1707 National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees |
