Staff Reports
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More than 130 people have now died across six states, with 1,000 still missing, as a result of the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
The storm hit Florida’s Big Bend coast late last week, moving up through Georgia and above, where it inflicted the most damage in eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina. The Category 4 Hurricane some are calling a “biblical” scale event, has wiped entire communities off the map and left innumerable amounts of people stranded after mountain roadways were swept away. More than 2 million people are still left without power and water, as of Tuesday morning, and the death toll continues to rise as floodwaters recede.
Rescue efforts continue around the clock, and as the days go by, volunteers and federal response teams struggle to get water and food to those stranded.
FEMA has delivered 1 million liters of water and 600K meals to North Carolina as of Wednesday, and people across the South and the United States have jumped into action, using pack mules, off-road vehicles, and personal aviation to deliver water and food, and help rescue survivors.
In Jackson County, communities have already begun taking donations and planning trips to the most affected areas this week to deliver food, water, baby formula, diapers, and more.
Jimmy Jones, fire chief of Section and Macedonia Fire Departments, is currently leading a response team of volunteers to Cherokee, North Carolina, a place close to his heart.
“My Grandpaw was raised in those mountains, and I grew up going to Cherokee and Gatlinburg area. I love those mountains and rivers, and I’m willing to help those people as much as I can. God put me in a position to help and gave me the time to do it,” Jones said in a post informing the public of the upcoming trips.
The Section Fire Department will continue to accept donated items for future trips to Tennessee and North Carolina.
To see a full list of items needed, visit the North Jackson Facebook page or follow Section Fire Department on Facebook for updates.
The Southern Baptist Convention Disaster Relief Team is headed to Clearwater, South Carolina to help cut trees off of homes, roadways, and driveways.
The group of seven, with members from the Sand Mountain Baptist Association, Tennessee River Baptist Association, and DeKalb Baptist Association, deployed on Monday.
The group will join other teams from across Alabama who have been mobilized through the Alabama Baptist State Convention. The volunteers will work in the community through ministries such as chainsaw and tarping operations, admin, chaplaincy, shower/laundry, and feeding operations.
To help the local Baptist group, visit the Sand Mountain Baptist Association Facebook page. There, you will find a link to donate on their most recent post or donate https://sbdr.org/give. You can also mail a check to:
Sand Mountain Baptist Association
PO Box 40
Pisgah, AL 35765
(Make a note that it is for Disaster Relief)
For ways to donate to the general Hurricane Helene relief operations, visit any of the following websites:
- redcross.org
- unitedway.org
- give.helpsalvationarmy.org
- my.care.org
- my.americares.org
- volunteerflorida.org
- cfwnc.fcsuite.com
- etf.fcsuite.com
Various groups around the area are making plans to take donations and make trips to the affected areas. As this information updates and changes quickly, check our Facebook page for local donation drop-off locations.
