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Washington, D.C. on May 21, 1881
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Red Cross undertakes its first disaster relief effort aiding victims of Michigan forest fires.
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Red Cross National Children's Fund is set up to aid youth in postwar Europe.
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Irving Berlin's "Angels of Mercy" becomes official Red Cross wartime song.
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Red Cross ends its World War II blood program for the military after collecting more than 13 million pints.
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Red Cross aids victims of massive earthquake that hits Anchorage, Alaska.
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Red Cross aids 14,000 families affected by the Loma Prieta earthquake in Northern California.
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Red Cross opens an Armed Forces Emergency Services (AFES) Center with hi-tech emergency communications service for military.
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Red Cross joins other groups to launch Measles Initiative, five-year plan to eradicate the disease in sub-Saharan Africa by immunizing children.
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Hurricane Katrina becomes one of the most destructive storms in the history of the Gulf Coast, killing nearly 2,000 and leaving millions homeless. Red Cross mobilizes its largest, single disaster relief effort to date. Two subsequent hurricanes of significant strength hit, Rita and Wilma, compounding the devastation and impacting relief operations.
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A magnitude 7.0 earthquake hits Haiti, leaving 1.5 million people homeless and prompting one of the largest single-country responses in the history of the global Red Cross and Red Crescent network. The public generously donates in support of the relief efforts, including donating via text messages on mobile phone, leading to a groundbreaking $32 million raised via SMS.
