11 ways you can help victims of the winter storms in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana

Power may have been restored to many of the millions in Texas who found they were unable to heat their homes in deadly, record-breaking cold, but the crisis in the US South continues to unfold.

Many people now lack safe drinking water, while more of the unprecedented snow and ice that crippled their pipes and infrastructure – in addition to overwhelming the power grid – is now forecast in other parts of the country.

The extreme winter weather has already been blamed for the deaths of at least 58 people, many of whom appear to have died while trying to stay warm.

Joe Biden has declared a state of emergency in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana, where hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses remain without power.

Emergency aid is on its way in the form of thousands of blankets and ready-eat meals, along with generators to support hospitals, care homes and water treatment plants.

But in addition to the federal response, people are donating to more local efforts to help those caught up in the humanitarian crisis left by the winter storm.

Here’s how you can help.

Texas

There are branches of several national organisations working on the ground in Texas to distribute food and other supplies, including Salvation Army and the American Red Cross, the latter of which is looking for blood and platelet donors.

If you’d like to donate to a food bank, Feeding Texas has a list of nearly two dozen that operating across Texas, which you can search by zip code.

A number of mutual aid funds are also working to provide housing, food and clothing, such as Mutual Aid Houston, Austin Mutual Aid, or Feed the People Dallas.

In Austin, longstanding homeless organisation Front Steps is accepting donations of blankets and other essentials via an Amazon wish list. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has also highlighted the work of the Bridge Homeless Recovery Centre, Ending Community Homeless Coalition (ECHO), Family Eldercare, and Houston Food Bank, to which you can donate here.

And if you want your money to go even further, NBA basketball team, the Dallas Wings, have promised to match all donations they receive of up to $6,000, which will go to the American Fidelity Foundation and OurCalling.

Louisiana

The Acadiana Regional Coalition on Homelessness & Housing, which operates in eight of Louisiana’s 64 parishes, is asking for donations to fund its emergency shelter, as well as for general support.

Feeding America has this list of food banks that are operating in the state, where the organisation said one in six people struggle with hunger day-to-day. One of those listed, the Foodbank of Northeast Louisiana, says a donation of $10 is enough to provide 55 meals.

Oklahoma

Aside from national organisations like the Red Cross, the Homeless Alliance – which has had its workers conducting outreach efforts until 2am through the crisis – is asking for donations to help bolster these efforts and run its day shelter while the “incredibly dangerous” conditions persist.

The Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma is also seeking funds, as well as donations of food.

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