North Alabama responds to Florida flooding - more cleaning bucket supplies needed
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Loading a trailer at the North Alabama Disaster Warehouse which will take 288 UMCOR Cleaning buckets and 672 UMCOR Health Kits to Live Oak, Florida. |
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The three volunteers in the green vests are the drivers Moody, Rose and Richard who arrived in Live Oak with the supplies midday on Sunday. |
On Friday, June 29, 2012, someone at the UMCOR Sager Brown Depot (the headquarters for UMCOR’s relief-supply operations) contacted the North Alabama Disaster Warehouse in Decatur requesting 300 Cleaning Buckets for the flooded parts of Florida due to Tropical Storm Debby.
Volunteers gathered in the extreme heat and loaded the supplies that afternoon to be shipped to Live Oak, Florida. The supplies arrived on Sunday afternoon.
As the shipment began to move south on Friday Rev. William M. Finnin, Jr., the Lead Pastor of Live Oak First UMC emailed, “From ALL of US to ALL of YOU, gratitude unlimited in the name of Christ. At this point we have about 500 families in this county alone, Suwannee, who have had water in their homes and either have begun or will begin mucking out. We're working closely with the Emergency Response Center of the Sheriff's Department here. They coordinate the information and activities of multiple local and state agencies and also work with FEMA."
He added "We are in the earliest phase of responding, still assessing impacts, still having rising water and still watching (and counting) sinkholes opening. At present we have more than 70 NEW sinkholes in evidence since Tuesday. One threatens the downtown area and has already caused the condemnation of several stores along our main thoroughfare, US 90, and has produced foundation and exterior (at the very least) fissures in part of our judicial complex adjourning our historic Suwannee County Courthouse. First UMC is across one of the main streets (S Ohio) from the Courthouse and approximately a block from the sinkhole. Interesting times we live in here in north Florida! Looking forward to meeting and greeting you all tomorrow. We have a warehouse and machinery and labor! We'll be bulked up for the job after our Communion Service!”
Call for Cleaning Bucket Supplies
Director of the North Alabama Disaster Warehouse Rev. Ray Crump reports that this shipment, “will just about deplete our present stock of cleaning buckets.”
He adds, “If your congregation would like to help us restock our supplies, so we can be ready for the next storm, it would be greatly appreciated! We are in the hurricane and tornado season in Alabama at this time.”
Click here to download the list of contents for an UMCOR cleaning bucket.
Rev. Crump also reports, “We have the 5 gallon buckets with lids, so do not buy them.”
Your congregation can gather the needed supplies and deliver them to the Decatur Disaster Warehouse at 3220 Hwy 31 South, Building F, Decatur, AL 35603. The Warehouse is staffed by dedicated volunteers, so please call ahead to let them know you are coming with a delivery. Call (256) 341-9961.
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