• Mary Jo Barnello

Salvation Army Service Continues as Irene Relief Effort Enters Fifth Day

Oneonta, New York (September 1, 2011) – As relief efforts in flood ravaged areas of upstate New York continue unabated, The Salvation Army has six mobile canteen units deployed throughout the region serving hundreds of meals each day. Salvation Army teams are working in communities throughout the state including Delhi, Deposit, Fleischmanns, Margaretville, Prattsville, Roxbury, Schenectady and Schoharie. In addition, two semi-truckloads of drinking water, provided by Walmart, have been delivered to Essex and Schenectady counties, where floodwaters and power outages have contaminated local supplies.

“It’s becoming increasingly apparent that this will be a serious and long-term disaster response for many parts of New York state,” said Major Ron Lee, Incident Commander for The Salvation Army’s response in the region. “The Salvation Army lives and works in these communities, so we will be there for the long road to recovery ahead.” 

To date, The Salvation Army’s response in the region has included:

• 6 mobile feeding canteens deployed in flood-ravaged areas of Delhi, Deposit, Fleischmanns, Margaretville, Prattsville, Roxbury, Schenectady and Schohariehave served more than 2,600 meals, drinks and snacks.
• Baby formula, food and diapers were sent to Margaretville and Fleischmanns.
• The Salvation Army is continuing to provide feeding support at the Montgomery County shelter in Amsterdam and the Schenectady High School shelter in Schenectady.
• Two semi-truckloads of drinking water, provided by Walmart, have been delivered to Essex and Schenectady counties, where floodwaters and power outages have contaminated local supplies.
• Acquisition of a warehouse in the Schenectady area to accept, manage and distribute donations.
• The Salvation Army is staging 2,000 clean-up kits in Oneonta to assist families whose homes have been damaged.

“Our most critical need right now is for monetary donations,” said Major Lee. “We are doing our best to keep up with requests for assistance, but can only work with the resources we have.”

As The Salvation Army continues to respond and deploy vital resources throughout New York, donations are increasingly critical. Contributions can be made online at www.SalvationArmyUSA.org, by calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY or by texting the word “STORM” to 80888 to make a $10 donation through your mobile phone.* For more information on The Salvation Army’s preparation and response to Hurricane Irene, please visit http://blog.salvationarmyusa.org/, www.facebook.com/salvationarmyusaor www.twitter.com/salvationarmyus. 

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About The Salvation Army

The Salvation Army, an evangelical part of the universal Christian church established in London in 1865, has been supporting those in need in His name without discrimination for more than 130 years in the United States. Nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through the broadest array of social services that range from providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless and opportunities for underprivileged children. 82 cents of every dollar The Salvation Army spends is used to support those services in 5,000 communities nationwide. For more information, go to www.salvationarmyusa.org.

 

* A oneâ??time donation of $10 will be billed to your mobile phone bill. Messaging & data rates may apply. Donations are collected for The Salvation Army by mobilecause.com. Reply STOP to 80888 to stop. Reply HELP to 80888 for help. For terms, see www.igfn.org/t.