Local help on its way to the Northeast

KXAN (AUSTIN) - Travel to and from the Northeast is still on hold.

Austin Bergstrom International Airport had about 20 flights canceled Monday due to Hurricane Sandy shutting down airports on the East Coast. Cancelations continued through Tuesday.

But that isn't stopping help from getting to the storm ravaged areas. Emergency crews from central Texas are embarking to the Northeast as part of the hurricane relief effort.

Local emergency crews began heading East Monday toward Hurricane Sandy, to help in the aftermath. 

Austin Energy sent 10 of its three-man crews and two four-man crews. They'll spend three to four days on the road and then get to work, trimming trees and restoring power.

More than 100 Oncor workers and contractors from Dallas are on their way, making a 22-hour drive toward Baltimore. They'll help Baltimore Gas and Electric restore power to thousands of customers.

Houston power company Centerpoint sent crews to Baltimore and Washington D.C.

Austin Energy contractors like Pike Electric say power outages will be one of the biggest problems.

"Mainly just downed power lines and a lot of trees broken is usually what causes most of the damage," says Chad Stewart with Pike Electric, "The area that it's hitting is really congested.  That's where the majority of the population is, so they're going to need all the help they can get."

It could be a lengthy clean up process.  Relief teams expect to be gone two to three weeks.

The American Red Cross of Central Texas is also joining relief efforts. They sent two people to New York ahead of the storm.

One volunteer from Austin will work with government officials on resource allocation.  Another volunteer will focus on health services.

"We want to pre-position them because they may not be able to travel right away after the storm hits because airports may be closed. Transportation may be affected so we need them in the area prior to landfall," says Denise Blok with American Red Cross of Central Texas, "They'll be assessing any needs that clients may have.  Maybe somebody's lost all their medication and they need that replaced.  They'll be able to work with our nurses to get that done."

Red Cross volunteers began setting up shelters in North Carolina and Virginia as early as Saturday.