DAY-CARE FIRE TRAGEDY : Crisis Intervention Team : Red Cross Rushes Aid to Survivors

When the hysterical mother of an 8-month-old girl who died in Thursday’s fire arrived at the scene, members of a new American Red Cross crisis intervention team were there to help Susan Jordan deal with the tragedy.

About 35 mental health professionals and registered nurses belong to the volunteer program, which was started last November to assist people involved in everything from fires to plane crashes, said Sylvia Stewart, public relations director for the Red Cross in Orange County.

In addition to immediate counseling, the Red Cross offers free follow-up therapy for those who may be haunted by their disaster-related experiences. Victims of disasters sometimes suffer from the post-traumatic stress syndrome that also affects combat soldiers, Stewart said.

Victims have reported that they are plagued by nervousness, sleep disorders and other behavioral problems for weeks or months after a disaster, she said.

“Often there are feelings of helplessness these people are dealing with,” Stewart said.

Four counselors spent most of Thursday at the fire site, consoling neighbors who witnessed the fire, families of the victims and rescue personnel. The Red Cross team also “runs interference” for victims who are being sought by news reporters, spectators or fire officials.

Jordan was quickly shepherded into a white van, where counselors spent about 15 minutes talking to her. They wrapped her in a white blanket and gave her a cold drink as the 21-year-old mother started coming to terms with her loss.

“She was definitely in shock,” said Linda M. Johnson, a Huntington Beach therapist among those who talked to Jordan. “I don’t think there’s a lot you can say. You just try to be there for them.”

The counselors also talked with firefighters, ambulance drivers and others involved in trying to rescue the two children who died in the fire. Counselors gathered the rescue workers in a nearby yard, where they sat under a tree and discussed their frustration over the death of the two babies.

“They’re the ones who have to do this job and then get out, and they’re left with all these feelings,” said Johnson, who has been a therapist for about 10 years.

“One fireman said, ‘I’ve got a 3-year-old niece. I think I’m going to go home and call her.’ When you’re faced with death it brings to the surface your own feelings about your own family.”