• Philip Burn

The Salvation Army of Texas Providing Practical Support to Neighbors in Need

Dallas, Texas (August 31, 2020) – Seven mobile kitchens and crews from The Salvation Army of Texas have been assigned to provide practical support to their neighbors in Lake Charles, LA. Hurricane Laura made a slight detour to the east as it made landfall which dramatically changed the impact of the powerful storm in Southeast Texas, and ultimately put Lake Charles directly in the path of the hurricane.

While Texas communities such as Orange, Bridge City and Vidor are without power, the Lake Charles area additionally suffered severe damage to houses and businesses, splintered and uprooted trees, snapped telephone poles, and downed power lines. Mobile kitchens from Lubbock, Waco, Tyler and Rapid Response Units from Granbury, Freeport, Plano, and Mid-Cities (Dallas) spent Sunday serving meals to residents in Lake Charles. The Lubbock team utilized a Mule (ATV) to deliver meals deep into affected neighborhoods where downed power lines and trees made it impossible for the full-size mobile kitchen to enter. Seven additional units spent the day serving in Southeast Texas.

“The Salvation Army in Texas has sent seven canteen crews over to help us serve Lake Charles for the last few days in addition to the six feeding sites we have operating in the city,” said Major Kent Davis, Divisional Commander of The Salvation Army in Alabama/Louisiana/Mississippi (ALM). “That’s what we do. We help each other. Thank you to staff and volunteers from Texas and ALM who are serving Lake Charles and other affected cities. You are sacrificing a lot to be here and we salute you.”

One Lake Charles resident shared her experience while riding out the storm. “I stayed through the storm because we didn’t really have anywhere else to go. I used to live in Kansas and have been through tornadoes, but this was much worse. The wind was howling all around the house and I was sat in the corner of my living room, clutching my prayer blanket, and praying to God for his protection,” said Sue. “The louder the wind roared, the tighter I squeezed my blanket. I’ve got a huge oak tree in my front yard and I prayed that it would not fall onto my house. After the storm passed, I went outside to find branches and tree limbs spread across my yard, but miraculously, not one hit the house. Praise God! Thank you for being here today and for lunch. It's the first hot meal I've had in days."

The Salvation Army is serving food in the following fixed locations on Monday:

• Bridge City – Market Basket: 2005 Texas Ave Bridge City, TX
• Port Arthur – Sam Houston Elementary: 3245 36th Port Arthur, TX
• Orange Corps – 1950 MLK Drive Orange, TX
• Vidor – 114 W. Bolivar St, Vidor TX
• Newton – Newton Church/Food Bank: 501 Main Street, Newton, TX
• Jasper – Court House Annex: 271, E. Lamar, Jasper, TX
• Hemphill – 3134 Fairdale Rd, Hemphill, TX
• Deweyville High School – 171 TX-12, Deweyville, TX (TX-12 & HWY 87)
• Mauriceville Middle School – 19952 FM 1130, Orange, TX

The Salvation Army has served 34,517 meals, 28,231 drinks, 15,809 snacks in affected communities in Southeast Texas since the response effort to Hurricane Laura began on Friday. Trained staff and volunteers have prayed with 242 storm survivors.

The best way to support the disaster work of The Salvation Army by making a financial donation at www.helpsalvationarmy.org or by calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY. For the latest information please go to www.disaster.salvationarmyusa.org and watch for regular updates on our social media pages at www.facebook.com/salvationarmytexas/ and www.twitter.com/salarmytx.