American Red Cross volunteers from King County are among the 100-plus from Washington who have been sent to the Gulf Coast area in response to Hurricane Gustav.

In 10 states affected by the hurricane that struck this week, Red Cross volunteers have staffed shelters and provided meals and emotional support to almost 60,000 people who evacuated their homes in advance of the storm.

More help could become necessary as a result of other major storms that were brewing this week off the east and southeast coasts of the United States, according to Dave Nichols, the readiness manager for Red Cross in King and Kitsap counties.

“Our volunteers who are already established locally are the first ones to be deployed when there are national disaster responses like Hurricane Gustav,” said Nichols. “Now is a good time to fill out an application and get trained to be a disaster volunteer. We anticipate sending out additional volunteers if Tropical Storms Hanna and Ike look like they will be heading toward the U.S.”

As of Wednesday, a combined 30 volunteers from the King and Kitsap chapters of Red Cross had been deployed in response to Gustav. None of the volunteers are from the Covington and Maple Valley area, according to spokeswoman Katherine Boury.

When evacuated citizens are allowed to return home, Red Cross volunteers will be there with meals, snacks, cleaning supplies, toiletries and mental-health support, Boury said. In preparation, Red Cross has moved its relief workers into evacuated areas, along with emergency-response vehicles and mobile kitchens.

Whikle the response to Hurricane Gustav has gotten greater attention because of the national news coverage of the storm, similar work by Red Cross is common in King County on a virtually daily basis, officials said.

“There are a lot of opportunities to volunteer in our community, and it’s a great way to help your neighbors,” Nichols said. “We respond to a residential fire every 42 hours in King and Kitsap counties, and for the last two years we’ve had major regional flooding. We need people to become volunteers now so they are ready to respond to major regional events like flooding” or situations similar to the 2006 windstorm.

Meanwhile, Red Cross is seeking nominations for its Everyday People, Everyday Heroes awards in King County. Winners in categories such as fire, police, workplace safety, adult and youth good Samaritan, and nature and medical rescue will be honored March 26 at a formal ceremony.

Nominees must be a resident of or work in King County, or the heroic act must have occurred or be ongoing between Dec. 1, 2007, and Nov. 30, 2008.

More information about the nomination process is available at (206) 726-3543 and www.seattleredcross.org.