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By Dulcinea Cuellar Kimrey –
The Salvation Army of Florida is responding to record flooding in Pasco County and the surrounding areas.
The Salvation Army is deploying a shower unit to an evacuation shelter at First Presbyterian Church at 7540 Ridge Road in Port Richey to help flood evacuees. The shelter is one of several American Red Cross shelters opening to house people under mandatory evacuation orders across Pasco County.
In Hillsborough county, The Salvation Army is coordinating with local officials at the emergency operations center. The Salvation Army’s Red Shield Lodge in downtown Tampa will remain open all day for homeless that are affected by the widespread flooding.
The Salvation Army is continuing to monitor throughout the Tampa Bay area to assess need and coordinate with emergency management as the need grows.
“We are finding ways to help the best we can, but our immediate goal is to help spread the word not to risk injury attempting to navigate these flood waters,” said Gary Sapper, a volunteer with The Salvation Army’s Pasco county team. “We are hearing that people are trying to drive through these waters and then they become part of the problem. These are things that can be prevented.”
The Salvation Army asks people who want to help those affected by the flooding in the Tampa Bay Area to visit disaster.salvationarmyusa.org or call 1-800-SAL-ARMY.
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
For the latest emergency disaster services news, please visit www.disaster.salvationarmyusa.org and follow the EDS team on Twitter @SalArmyEDS.
