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Yesterday, CN announced it teamed up with the Canadian Red Cross to help recruit and train employees as disaster volunteers to help the agency respond to natural disasters.

The Class I also contributed $450,000 (Canadian dollars) to become a national sponsor of the Ready When the Time Comes (RWTC) natural disaster preparedness program. Through the program, the Red Cross trains and prepares employees of businesses who can be mobilized as a local-based volunteer force when large-scale natural disasters strike, including floods, fires, tornadoes and extreme weather conditions.

CN's contribution will enable the RWTC program to train volunteers and develop information on preparing for emergencies, as well as disaster and emergency intervention strategies.

“We feel it is our responsibility to help the communities in which we operate, and our partnership with the Canadian Red Cross will help us fulfill that objective,” said Karen Phillips, CN's vice president of public and government affairs, in a prepared statement.

Meanwhile, Norfolk Southern Corp. announced it’s supporting relief efforts in Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee, three of the states hardest hit by a series of severe storms this week.

NS plans to contribute $100,000 to the American Red Cross in each of the three states, provide free rail transportation for certain critical response supplies and issue zero-interest loans for employees who suffered property damage. The Class I employs 3,600 people in Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee.

"The thoughts and prayers of everyone at NS are with our employees, neighbors and business partners who have been affected by these terrible storms," said NS Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Wick Moorman in a prepared statement.

St. Louis Metro is providing severe storm relief, too. The agency is giving MetroLink rail and MetroBus access to St. Louis County residents whose vehicles were buried under debris from tornadoes that struck on April 22.

Metro Transit has donated 1,000 transit passes for distribution to residents who need transportation as a result of the storms. Each pass is good for two hours of travel by rail or bus.