• Patricia James

Salvation Army Ready To Respond As Irene Hits Northern New England

Portland, Maine (August 28, 2011) – While closely monitoring the path of Hurricane Irene, now downgraded to a Tropical Storm, Salvation Army officers and emergency disaster canteens crews have prepared to assist in those areas of New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine now predicted to be hit hard with heavy rains and winds.

The Salvation Army is equipped to serve 2,500 people a day through five canteens, providing meals, snacks and hot and cold beverages. In addition, Salvation Army chaplains stand ready to provide spiritual and emotional care to emergency responders and community members.

Emergency canteens are based at the following locations: 

•  Bangor, ME
•  Lewiston, ME
•  Sanford/Old Orchard Beach, ME
•  Derry, NH
•  Nashua, NH
•  Burlington, VT

Salvation Army canteens are fully equipped mobile kitchens that are able to provide meals butalso carry additional resources, including water, snacks, work gloves, hygiene products and clean up kits. 

“Although the severity of the storm has been downgraded, we are taking it very seriously and have alerted our personnel to be ready to move quickly to the areas where they are most needed,” said Major James LaBossiere, Divisional Commander for the Northern New England Division.

Monetary donations to help The Salvation Army’s hurricane relief effortsmay be sent to The Salvation Army, Disaster Gift Processing Center, P.O. Box 1959, Atlanta, GA 30301 – Designation ‘2011 Hurricane Season’.   Credit card donations, please call 1-800-SAL-ARMY.   Online: donate.salvationarmyusa.org/Irene Also, you can text to give, Text ‘STORM’ to 80888 to make a $10 contribution.  Thank you!

The Salvation Army is already serving thousands in the path of Hurricane Irene.

• Preparation, feeding and other relief efforts are underway in 15 states from the Carolinas to Maine.
• In New Jersey, The Salvation Army has served nearly 15,000 meals to first responders and evacuees.
• The Salvation Army also served nearly 11,000 meals, food and drinks in Greenville, Washington, Elizabeth City and Morehead City in the Carolinas.
• In Norfolk County, VA, The Salvation Army has served nearly 2,000 meals and snacks and provided lodging to 250 people.
• Similar activities are taking place up and down the East Coast.
• In total, The Salvation Army has 370 mobile feeding units and five mobile kitchens ready to deploy to the area of most need.
• Each mobile food kitchen can make 20,000 meals per day and a mobile canteen can make 1,500 meals per day.The Salvation Army can produce several hundred thousand meals per day when operating at full capacity.

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 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.