Tornado Relief Project - Call To Action

Posted by Ed Charlesworth PDG 
on May 01, 2011
 
We have seen the devestating results of the massive tornados that swept throughout the south. District 5890 has risen to the occasion many times, assisting those in harms way, and we can do it again.  Local Rotary District 5890 Rotarians, Hurley Johnson and Hugh Conway, traveled to Alabama to help the inhabitants of Hackleburg and will be leading our relief efforts.  PDG Ed Charlesworth will have the Rotary Trailer at District Assembly, so bring your donations of cash, clothing, water, generators, chain saws, etc.   We should be able to fill up the Rotary Trailer, and use the donated cash to purchse addition needed items.

Please send contributions for our Rotary Disaster Relief Committee to District Treasurer Jackie Barmore, 3525 Preston Road, Pasadena, TX 77505 or click the link below to make online donations. For more information please contact PDG Ed Charlesworth, 281-890-8575, charlesworth@stresscontrol.com or Ivan Butterfield, 281-431-2254, ivbutterfield@aol.com. Let's show our neighbors in Alabama that we are there for them.


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Hurley & Hugh's first report: (Follow their daily journal on the left side fo this web page)

We got the generators distributed yesterday and I have a team of local chainsaw volunteers who are lucky ones who did not have significant damage to their houses.  Trucks and outside help started to arrive yesterday .  The main roads were blocked until yesterday morning.  I understand that President Obama touched down here briefly yesterday afternoon.  I have enclosed a few pictures I took on my cell phone, so they are not very good quality.  Hopefully Hurley will be able to email you some or arrive there today with his camera.  The path of destruction was large.  It tracked along the main Hwy (43) coming into town from the South.  It first touched down about 10 miles out of town and then wiped away nearly every home along the hwy (approx 25 homes) with a path that was about half mile wide.  As it hit the city limits it widened to about a mile and took out the main residential area of about 75 - 100 homes and then flattened the school,  main shopping area, and places of employment, including a Wrangler warehouse (see pictures) and most of the churches.  They are saying it was the strongest category tornado (force 5 I believe).

Yesterday everyone seemed shelled shocked.  About 30 bodies have been found so far, and a number are still missing.  Today there clean up is under way.  They say it will be 3 -4 weeks before electricity is back.  Hopefully they will figure out a way to get the public water back before then.  There is electricity in Hamilton AL about 15 miles south and in Russellville, about 15 miles north.  So gas, food, water and other supplies are not far away.  Police road blocks are set up around all entrances to Hackleburg, but they are letting in volunteers, which appear to be arriving in significant numbers from surrounding communities.  There is a sun down curfew.

Clean up and reconstruction will take months. Outside help is appreciated.  Generators, chainsaws, and people to help with physical labor associated with clean up are much appreciated.   I need to get back to work.  Hugh