Texas Baptist Men placed disaster relief units on “alert” status in anticipation of possible deployment to Florida as part of a multistate Southern Baptist disaster response to Hurricane Idalia.
Hurricane Idalia made landfall in Keaton Beach at about 7:45 a.m. EST on Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane, the National Hurricane Center reported. Maximum sustained winds registered at 125 mph with Cedar Key, 58 miles southeast of Keaton Beach, reporting a 7-foot storm surge.
By 1:30 p.m., Idalia was downgraded to Category 1 and had moved into southeast Georgia with sustained winds of 80 mph amid heavy rain. Storm surge warnings remained along the Georgia and South Carolina coasts.
Florida Baptist disaster relief’s planning and preparation were well underway prior to Idalia’s arrival.
“We are prepped and ready to move equipment as soon as it is safe to start doing so,” said David Coggins, director of Florida Baptist disaster relief. “We have a couple of leaders in the State Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee getting our resources prepared to be delivered, once we get our feeding and clean-up operations in place.”
Florida Baptists also are working in conjunction with The Salvation Army and American Red Cross to meet area needs, a Florida Baptist Convention spokesperson said.
North Carolina Baptists on Mission posted a photo of its swift water rescue team in Florida prior to Idalia’s arrival. “Please keep them in your prayers,” the post read.
Georgia and South Carolina Baptist volunteers were on “standby,” ready to respond on short notice alongside Florida Baptists, said Coy Webb, crisis response director for Send Relief.
“Send Relief pre-staged its swift water rescue team in Florida and has activated resources such as tarping rolls, water, food and flood clean-up supplies at our Ashland (Ky.) warehouse, and they are being mobilized now,” Webb said.
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National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan said that “considerable” threats remain with Idalia in terms of rainfall that can lead to urban and flash flooding.
“This is not a hazard you want to underestimate,” he said.
With reporting by Scott Barkley of Baptist Press.
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