Posted: 9/17/04
Fighting the tide: TBM travels to help after Ivan
By John Hall
Texas Baptist Communications
Two Texas Baptist Men feeding teams are traveling to Alabama as part of a larger Southern Baptist disaster relief effort to help those who were affected by Hurricane Ivan, which slammed the Gulf Coast early Sept. 16.
The Tarrant Baptist Association and Top O’ Texas Baptist Area feeding teams are traveling to Mobile, Ala. Gary Smith, state disaster relief volunteer coordinator for Texas Baptist Men, said the volunteers are moving to bring hope to the area.
“We hope they bring a mixture of comfort and normalcy to those people to whom they give a warm meal and a cold cup of water,” Smith said.
More than 30 Southern Baptist disaster relief units remain staged in Georgia and Louisiana to respond to the destruction caused by Ivan, according to Jim Burton, director of volunteer mobilization for the Southern Baptist Convention North American Mission Board. He expects that number to climb as the damage is assessed.
Ivan and its 130 mph winds made landfall on the east side of Mobile Bay and has been blamed for seven deaths in the United States by late Sept. 16. According to reports, the storm knocked out power to more than 1.1 million people in Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida.
Southern Baptist disaster relief units have returned to portions Florida and continue serving residents who are recovering from hurricanes Charley and Frances.
Yet another storm, Hurricane Jeanne, has formed in the Atlantic and is moving toward the United States.
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