Salvation Army Staged for Deployment as Hurricane Irma Heads for Georgia
Donald Felice | donald.felice@uss.salvationarmy.org | (404) 550-3716
ATLANTA, GEORGIA (September 10, 2017) The Salvation Army in Georgia is ready to provide physical, emotional, and spiritual care to survivors and relief workers as Hurricane Irma makes its way up the western Florida coast Sunday and Monday and impacts Georgia late Monday afternoon. Disaster units are staged and ready to serve, and additional resources outside Georgia are ready to mobilize and offer additional assistance as needed.
A total of 18 mobile kitchens (canteens) – each with the capacity to serve an average of 750 meals per day – are either currently staged in, or ready to deploy to, anticipated impact areas throughout the state. An Incident Management Team (IMT) is positioned in Atlanta to coordinate the ongoing disaster response, but is ready to move closer to impacted areas if needed.
“We are staging critical relief supplies in key locations in preparation and will deploy close to the worst affected areas in the coming days,” said Major Douglas McClure, The Salvation Army Georgia Incident Commander. “We are grateful to our partners during times of disaster who provide essential disaster supplies.”
As Georgia Governor Nathan Deal declared the entire state of Georgia under a state of emergency today ahead of Irma’s appearance, Salvation Army units throughout the state are working closely with local Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs) and community partners. Many have opened their doors as emergency shelters and others are supporting city and American Red Cross shelter operations with mass feeding.
Currently, The Salvation Army in Georgia has served over 4,000 meals, 7,000 snacks and beverages, and provided emotional and spiritual care to over 3,000 individuals.
“The Salvation Army is already at work in many communities that find themselves in the path of the storm,” said McClure. “Georgia can rest assured The Salvation Army is here and committed to serving the needs of those impacted as long as is needed.”
To make a financial donation to support the Hurricane relief efforts please go to www.helpsalvationarmy.org or call 1-800-SAL-ARMY.
For the latest information on The Salvation Army disaster response, please visit www.disaster.SalvationArmyUSA.org and watch for regular updates on our social media pages at www.facebook.com/SalvationArmyGeorgia and www.twitter.com/TSAGeorgia.
About The Salvation ArmyThe Salvation Army annually helps more than 30 million Americans overcome poverty, addiction, and economic hardships through a range of social services. By providing food for the hungry, emergency relief for disaster survivors, rehabilitation for those suffering from drug and alcohol abuse, and clothing and shelter for people in need, The Salvation Army is doing the most good at 7,600 centers of operation around the country. In the first-ever listing of “America’s Favorite Charities” by The Chronicle of Philanthropy, The Salvation Army ranked as the country’s largest privately funded, direct-service nonprofit. For more information, visit www.SalvationArmyUSA.org. Follow us on Twitter @SalvationArmyUS and #DoingTheMostGood.