• Matt Pochily

The Salvation Army Responds to Hurricane Irene in Hampton Roads

Hampton Roads, VA (August 28, 2011)– Salvation Army personnel throughout Hampton Roads are responding to Hurricane Irene whose storm surges fell short of predicted damage but has left more than 300,000 in southeastern Virginia without power . Currently, The Salvation Army has 3 mobile feeding canteens providing clean-up kits, spiritual assistance and serving meals to reachable affected communities in Hampton Roads.  Mobile kitchens and canteen units are capable of serving over 1,000 meals per day.  

“We’re very fortunate that Irene was not devastating as originally predicted,” said Major Lewis Reckline of The Salvation Army.  “However, there are still residents, tourists and first-responders that will need supplies, food and support and that is what we aim to do now.”

As Irene hit the North Carolina coast and southeastern Virginia, The Salvation Army in Hampton Roads provided shelter to a total of 248 individuals and served a total of 637 meals while volunteers logged over 150 total hours.

Salvation Army mobile feeding canteens are currently positioned and roaming in the following areas:

-Ocean View (15^th View, Norfolk) serving lunch and dinner (as appropriate)

-Two roving canteens are serving lunch and dinner (as appropriate) in the Colonial Place and Park Place neighborhoods off of 38^th Street in Norfolk

-One roving canteen is serving lunch and dinner (as appropriate) in Franklin County

-One canteen remains on standby to serve and assist as needed

The best way to those affected by Irene  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 Hurricane Irene to visit www.salvationarmyusa.org or call 1-800-SAL-ARMY (1-800-725-2769).  Donors may also contribute $10 via their phone bill by text messaging the word STORM to 80888, and confirming the donation with the word, “Yes.”   Checks may be made out to The Salvation Army Disaster Relief,PO BOX 1959 Atlanta, GA 30301.  Please designate Hurricane 2011 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 the EDS team on Twitter @SalArmyEDS.  Interested parties may also visit SalArmyHR.org, facebook.com/salarmyhr, and follow twitter.com/salarmyhr.