More than a half-dozen Iowans are now on the wildfire-ravaged Hawaiian island of Maui, helping survivors there recover from last week’s swift-moving blaze. About a hundred people were killed in the fires and almost a thousand are still reported as missing. Emily Holley, spokeswoman for the American Red Cross Nebraska-Iowa Region, says seven Iowa volunteers are already on duty in Hawaii and several more are on standby.

Most of the Iowans who have been sent to Hawaii are working in emergency shelters, which will likely need to remain open for quite some time.

That emotional support is just as valuable in some cases as the staples of nourishment and shelter.

Given the distance, the Iowa volunteers are on a mandatory three-week deployment. While Hawaii is a long ways away, this isn’t the farthest Iowa Red Cross volunteers have been deployed in recent months, as the agency sent help from Iowa to Guam following a destructive typhoon in May. Holley says it’s gratifying how willing Iowans are to answer the call — and there are many ways to help.

Financial donations are also needed, by visiting the website red-cross-dot-org, by texting “REDCROSS” to 90999 to donate 10-dollars, or by calling 1-800-HELP NOW.