The AOK Division Prepared to Respond to Severe Weather Events

Oklahoma City, OK  (April 3, 2012)  – The Salvation Army Arkansas-Oklahoma Divisional Emergency Disaster Services (EDS) team has alerted all units in the state to be on standby as severe weather is predicted throughout the weekend.  “The Salvation Army is ready and prepared to serve when called," says Janelle Mulanax, Divisional Director of Emergency Disaster Services for Arkansas and Oklahoma.

The Salvation Army has a standby fleet of disaster vehicles and equipment including self-generated radio equipped mobile feeding units, catering trucks, and a Satellite Communications trailer.  Experts in specific areas of disaster relief services are assigned to a first response team which immediately responds to large disasters to assess the situation and determine services needed.  Salvation Army disaster teams stand ready to respond at a moment’s notice to either natural or man-made disasters.

Once damage reports have been received and local needs have been determined, EDS teams will serve throughout the impacted region.  In the short-term aftermath of the storm, Salvation Army officers and staff will focus primarily on immediate needs providing food, hydration, and emotional and spiritual care to impacted individuals and families.

The best way to help survivors and relief workers is to make a financial contribution. Monetary donations allow disaster responders to immediately meet the specific needs of disaster survivors.
The Salvation Army asks people who want to help those affected by disaster to visit www.salvationarmyusa.org or call 1-800-SAL-ARMY (1-800-725-2769.)   Checks may be made out to The Salvation Army Disaster Relief and mailed to Disaster Gift Processing Center, PO BOX 1959 Atlanta, GA 30301.  Please designate “Oklahoma storms” on all checks.

• A $10 donation feeds a disaster survivor for one day
• A $30 donation provides one food box, containing staple foods for a family of four, or one household cleanup kit, containing brooms, mops, buckets and other cleaning supplies
• A $100 donation can serve snacks and drinks for 125 survivors and emergency personnel at the scene of a disaster
• A $250 donation can provide one hot meal to 100 people or keep a hydration station operational for 24 hours
• A $500 donation keeps a Salvation Army canteen (mobile feeding unit) fully operational for one day

At this point, in-kind donations are not being accepted.  Used clothing and used furniture are seldom required during an incident.  However, these gifts are vitally important in supporting the day-to-day work of your local Salvation Army. Please consider giving these items to your local Salvation Army Family Store or dial 1-800-SA-TRUCK (1-800-728-7825).

For the latest emergency disaster services news, please visit www.disaster.salvationarmyusa.org and follow latest updates on Twitter @SalArmyEDS.  Interested parties may also visit www.salvationarmyaok.org, Facebook at www.facebook.com/SalArmyAOK, and follow us on Twitter @SalArmyAOK.  You may also follow the Central Oklahoma Area Command, located in Oklahoma City, on Twitter @SalvationArmyOK.

Additional updates will be sent as new information becomes available.

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About The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army, an evangelical part of the universal Christian church established in 1865, has been supporting those in need in His name without discrimination for 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 spent is used to carry out those services in 5,000 communities nationwide. For more information, go to www.salvationarmyusa.org.