UMR Communications is offering the latest headlines in the RSS format.
News
UMCOR issues appeal for more flood response Barbara Dunlap-Berg, Jul 1, 2010
UMNS PHOTO BY RONNY PERRY
Randall Hamm of Nashville, Tenn., lost everything he owned in historic flooding that struck the southeastern United States.
By Barbara Dunlap-Berg United Methodist News Service
When floodwaters drenched the southeastern United States in early May, viewers were glued to their TVs and other media.
But more pressing reports that focused on the Gulf Coast oil spill and the attempted bombing in Times Square drew attention and funds away from communities pummeled by spring storms.
Responding to the crisis, the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) issued on June 8 a special appeal—U.S. Disaster Response, UMCOR Advance #901670—for all areas affected by the storms.
“So much rain fell in two days in Tennessee—15 or more inches in some spots—that experts refer to the event as a ‘1,000-year flood,’ not expecting to see another like it in that span of time,” the Rev. Cynthia Harvey, UMCOR’s top executive, said in an e-mail to regular donors. “The best estimates say it will be at least two years before the people of Tennessee fully recover from the flood of 2010.”
Crops, especially in western Tennessee, suffered severe storm damage. Many families who had no flood insurance because they considered themselves safe from such an event ended up experiencing catastrophic losses.
Rain also poured over northern Mississippi and south-central and western Kentucky. Creeks and rivers overflowed banks and caused flash flooding.
In Nashville, Memphis and towns and villages spread over 52 counties, neighbors helped neighbors while volunteers arrived by the busload. Others assembled cleaning buckets, sending them to UMCOR Sager Brown and annual conference depots to deliver to those in need.
“There is great need for funding,” said the Rev. Tom Hazelwood, who coordinates UMCOR disaster response in the U.S., the Caribbean and Latin America. “We want to draw our donors’ attention to this great need so that the United Methodist Church can respond and help as many needy families as possible.”
“Farmers have lost crops and equipment,” said Bill Carr, Memphis Conference relief coordinator. “Once beautiful, level farmlands are now strewn with cars, tree limbs and other debris carried by floodwaters. People are out of school, out of work and out of money. There’s a lot of stress.”
UMCOR has worked with the affected conferences since the storms struck, Mr. Hazelwood said. “We have provided initial emergency grants, thousands of cleanup buckets and personnel.”
“We’ve been blessed with lots of volunteers, cleaning supplies, food, hygiene items and cash in meeting some of the immediate relief and cleanup needs,” said the Rev. Jason Brock, denominational relief coordinator for the Tennessee Conference. “As we begin to transition to long-term rebuilding and unmet needs, we’ll be asking for new ways you can serve Christ and neighbor.”
Key to the recovery process, Mr. Brock noted, are volunteers to help rebuild, offer free counseling, serve on local long-term recovery committees and pitch in at donation and distribution centers.
The Rev. Wayne Napier, disaster coordinator in the Mississippi Conference, expressed thanks for assistance and donations.
“Please continue to help in every way you can, as often as you can,” he said. “We are the church together.”
UMNS PHOTO BY RONNY PERRY
