PRINCETON — Bureau County residents wanting to help in recovery efforts for the victims of tropical storm Sandy are encouraged to make sure they are going about that assistance in the best way.

On Monday, Bureau County Red Cross Director Lori Compton said financial assistance is what will be needed from this area for this week’s expected hit of tropical storm Sandy along the East Coast. The stockpiling and transporting of supplies from the Bureau County area is more difficult and it’s much more efficient to collect monetary donations and have the Red Cross handle the purchase of needed supplies through the local neighborhoods where they are needed, Compton said.

In writing checks to the Red Cross, Compton said it’s important to write “Disaster Relief” on the memo line of the check, but not to designate the money to any specific relief effort, like the Sandy storm victims, Compton said. All money collected locally will be sent through the proper Red Cross channels and distributed to meet the on-site needs, she said.