|
September 20, 2004
UMCOR hurricane response
continues in Florida
Clean-up supplies needed
By Linda Beher
NEW YORK (UMNS) -- More than 80,000 Floridians have received
assistance from the United Methodist Church as they try to recover from
the multiple hurricanes of the season.
The United Methodist Committee on Relief and the denomination's
Florida Annual (regional) Conference have provided equipment and
volunteers for cleanup, as well as monetary grants.
Thirty tractor trailers full of cleanup supplies, emergency food and
building materials from UMCOR and other United Methodist disaster relief
depots have converged on the hardest-hit areas. Volunteers have borrowed
church vans and rented commercial trailers to redistribute supplies.
Volunteers from 22 states are removing debris, repairing roofs, and
clearing out mud and water in hurricane-devastated Florida homes. Nearly
30 percent of the state's United Methodist church buildings have
sustained damage.
UMCOR also is looking beyond Florida to the Caribbean islands, lashed
by the most violent storms in a decade. Hurricane Frances mauled nearly
every island in the Bahamas. In response, the agency sent an initial
grant to its Methodist partner in the Bahamas for water, shingles,
plywood, tarps, medical supplies and emergency food. UMCOR will also
help develop long-term recovery plans.
In Grenada, where Hurricane Ivan earned the nickname "Ivan the
Terrible," the Methodist Church in the Caribbean and the Americas,
UMCOR's partner, is coordinating recovery efforts. An emergency grant
will assist with initial cleanup and repairs and help supply fresh water
and food.
Mudslides and flash flooding plagued Jamaica in the aftermath of
Hurricane Ivan. Some residents are still without power or telephone
service. UMCOR is discussing response options with its partners there.
Long-term recovery will take three to five years, according to the
Rev. Kristin L. Sachen, program executive for UMCOR's disaster response.
"This is the UMCOR way, having the patience to be the last one out," she
said.
The agency continues to call for donations of cleaning supplies.
Specifications can be found at
gbgm-umc.org/umcor online at the UMCOR
Kits link. Gifts of money are also critical, to ensure continued
readiness as more hurricanes threaten.
Contributions should be earmarked for "Hurricanes 2004," Advance
#982410, and can be dropped in church offering plates, or mailed
directly to UMCOR, 475 Riverside Dr., Room 330, New York, NY 10115.
Donors who want to use a credit card may call, toll free, 800-554-8583.
Linda Beher is the communications director for
the United Methodist Committee on Relief.
# # #If
you know someone who has yet to sign up for e-HUM,
they simply need to send a blank e-mail from their preferred e-mail
account to add@inareaumc.org.
e-HUM Alert copyright
2004 by Indiana Area United Methodist Communications.
|
