Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Area Residents Aid Flood Victims

Volunteers make the difference in times of disaster.

Six area residents, five from Clark County and one from Nevada County, are ready to help, regardless where they have to go or what the emergency.

These six people, five men and one woman, recently returned from Texas, where they helped feed flood victims. These volunteers are: Charles Smith, Maxine Freeman, Dr. Cecil Sutley, Ken Crain and Tommy Webb.

All were trained by the Arkansas Baptist Disaster Relief organization, which has helped in 20 other disasters. These six have worked a total of 12 disasters combined.

The disaster organization has a tractor-trailer used to transport cooking gear and a day's supply of food to get the victims started on the road to recovery.

The transport unit also has tables, washing equipment, including power washers and its own generator to provide electricity when needed.

When it appeared as though a recent hurricane was going to hit the Gulf Coast, Smith was sent to Lake Village, La. He and the crew sent stayed there four days, before being sent back home when the hurricane changed direction.

However, when the floods hit Texas it was another story. These six went to Victoria, Texas, about 125 miles southwest of Houston, on Oct. 21. During the next 18 days the unit was in operation, more than 100,000 meals were prepared and served. The largest single day total was 10,800 meals.

The American Red Cross provides the food supply once the unit arrives, with the unit's crew doing the cooking. Volunteers with the Arkansas Baptist Disaster Relief normally spend no more than four days at a disaster scene, but a couple of these volunteers were there a full week.

Freeman, of Prescott, was one who worked a week. She said it's understandable why four days is the limit because by the time it was over she was exhausted.

While working the "kitchens" there were five trailers filled with food brought in. Three of these were refrigerated trailers, with the other two filled with dried goods.

This volume of food was necessary as a typical meal required 840 gallons of canned vegetables to be prepared. These veggies came from one-gallon cans.

A meal also needed 4,000 pork patties, while another saw 800 pounds of canned ham opened, along with 600 pounds of hot dog wieners.

Smith said once everything was operational, they could cook 60 gallons of rice in 20 minutes.

The pots used held five gallons each, but the food had to be cooked to 180 degrees before being given to the Red Cross. Once the Red Cross got the food, the temperature had to be at least 140 degrees before it could be serve, any cooler and it was thrown away.

Along with the group from this area to help with the cooking, a women's group from Mississippi came in to help with child care, while another group from North Carolina helped people salvage items from their homes.

Back at the "kitchen," it took five people to work at the can opener. One would grab the gallon cans, give them to the person opening the can, who handed off to someone to dump the contents, while another tossed the lid. The other helper scraped the inside of the cans after they were emptied.

Smith said the pots would hold 100 meals, with each person served getting six ounces of meat and six ounces of vegetables per meal.

The group cooked two meals a day, at noon and in the evening. Cooking would begin at 5 a.m., ending at 2:30 p.m.

The washing crew started work at 5 p.m. and finished when all the cooking gear was clean sometimes well after midnight.

Smith said Victoria, Texas was not hit hard by the floods, and the city's water was potable. This is why the group located there. It must have a good, reliable supply of water to cook and clean with.

Once the meals were cooked and given to the Red Cross workers, they were literally driven to the actual disaster site, starting at 75 miles away.

But everything wasn't all fun and games for the relief workers. A batch of Kool-Aid resulted in a fight. Of course, the fight was with a swarm of honey bees wanting the sweet liquid.

The workers fought the bees, with few being stung. Smith said they learned quickly a mixture of dish washing detergent and water would kill the bees. Toxins are not allowed anywhere near the food.

All agreed the hardest part of the job was working with the victims, looking into the faces of fellow human beings who had lost literally everything but their lives. Still, the victims would come by and thank the relief workers for the aid they were rendering.

Arkansas has 283 trained volunteers with Baptist Disaster Relief. Nationwide, this number is 14,848.

Arkadelphia recently received a completely outfitted unit of its own. This unit is rated at 1,500 meals a day during local emergencies. This unit was first used in a recent drowning at DeGray Lake.

Smith said anyone needing the unit in an emergency situation can contact the local sheriff, the Red Cross, the Red River Baptist Association or the Office of Emergency Services. "We're here to serve people," he said.

And, anyone wanting to volunteer needs to contact the Red River Baptist Association for training. Until the training is completed, volunteers can't be sent to disasters.

These volunteers must also pay their way to and from the disaster sites.

In spite of the hardships endured, all six said there was a lot of comradery among the workers and never to be forgotten experiences to be had. Freeman compared these meetings to reunions because the volunteers meet with others they haven't seen in a long time.

While all agree it would be nice not to be needed, they are ready at a moment's notice to head to the next disaster site and offer their services to their fellow man.