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Regional, national groups now assisting in Ohio County flood relief

Julian Wilkerson, a disaster relief specialist with the Matthew 25: Ministries, sets up the canopy in front of the “Tide Loads Of Hope” truck, located outside Walmart at The Highlands. Local residents affected by flooding can come to the truck this weekend to have laundry washed, and take showers. (Photo by Joselyn King)

WHEELING — Food relief areas in Triadelphia, Valley Grove and Wheeling are getting love and donations from outside West Virginia.

National groups and a PIttsburgh-area fire station are among those presently working in the area to assist residents in need.

Matthew 25: Ministries of Cincinnati has brought its “Tide Loads of Hope” truck with washing machines and the “P&G Mobile Shower Unit” to Walmart at The Highlands. The facilities will remain available to the public each day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through at least the weekend, according to Maddie Stafford, a disaster relief specialist with the Matthew 25: Ministries.

The church organization partners with Proctor and Gamble and Walmart to provide needed items and services to areas affected by disaster.

“Households can come up and drop off up to three bags of laundry a day,” Stafford said. “We’ll process that within a few hours – wash, dry and fold it. Then we will send them a text message to tell them they can come pick it up.

“We will also be going out into communities to pick up laundry from households directly, bring it back here, process it, then bring it back to their house.”

People also may have “as many hot showers as they want each day” in the mobile shower unit, she continued. The unit is stocked with P&G products for users.

“We will also be going out into the neighborhoods to provide door-to-door distribution today,” Stafford added. “We have things like paper products, diapers, personal care kits that we do through P&G, as well as Cintas Safety Kits.

“We also have lots of power tools needed for cleanup that we’ll freely distribute.”

She added the group additionally has batteries available upon request.

At 8 a.m. Thursday, a large truck from the Churches of Christ Disaster Relief organization of Nashville, Tenn., backed into the lot at the National Road Church of Christ in Wheeling carrying supplies for flood victims.

Church members scurried to help unload the truck and bring the items inside, where they will group items into boxes for distribution. There will be boxes containing non-perishable food, cleaning supplies, infant care items, hygiene products, clothing, bed linens and more.

These will be distributed from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, and from 1-4 p.m. Sunday at the church, which is located at 1310 National Road, Wheeling.

Pat Cronin, an elder at the church, said he first contacted the Churches of Christ Disaster Relief organization on Wednesday, and the truck carrying 25 skids of supplies arrived Thursday morning.

He reported there were no members of the church who sustained damage from Saturday’s flooding.

“But they have family members, friends and acquaintances who did,” Cronin said.

The church is also offering assistance through its disaster response team. Those in need of help should call the church at 304-650-1175.

As of Thursday afternoon, the Canonsburg Volunteer Fire Department in Pennsylvania had sent nine trucks of donated supplies to the West Alexander Fairgrounds for distribution in Valley Grove, Triadelphia and Ohio County communities, according to Chief Tim Solobay.

“Monday evening after our training session I got everybody together,” he said. “I said, ‘We were fortunate in that we had little damage here… But look what happened in West Virginia. Triadelphia (fire department) was completely wiped out. What do you think we could do to help out?'”

Last year, the Cannonsburg VFD joined with other departments to send supplies to crisis areas in Kentucky, he explained.

Solobay had seen a post on Facebook from the Ohio County Emergency Management about what items were most needed in the county, and the department decided it would start collecting these items in their community for Ohio County.

By Wednesday morning, members had collected enough to send the first of eight truckloads to West Alexander. The trucks continued throughout the day on Wednesday,

Solobay said by early Thursday afternoon there were again enough items to send a ninth truck.

“It’s amazing,” he said. “People brought monetary donations, and they brought truck loads of items. One group brought in 10 new box fans.

“There were mops, buckets, cases of water, Clorox, gloves … a plethora of items.”

The department is planning on taking donations through the weekend, then deciding what their next move will be.

“They haven’t asked for clothing or appliances yet because they’re still cleaning up,” Solobay said. “We’ll make a determination on what is still needed.”

Two national disaster relief organizations, Samaritan’s Purse and Eight Days of Hope, are mobilizing to assist the Ohio County community with recovery efforts.

Newbridge Church, located at 647 Warden Run Road in Wheeling, is hosting both organizations at its facilities, serving as a hub for volunteer coordination.

Over the next few days these organizations will arrive with trucks and trailers loaded with equipment and hundreds of volunteers from across the country ready to help clean out homes and support affected residents.

“We’re preparing for a major recovery effort over the next few weeks,” said Pastor Chris Figaretti of Newbridge Church. “This is an opportunity for our community to come together. If you’d like to help your neighbors, please visit www.newbridgechurch.us to sign up with either Samaritan’s Purse or Eight Days of Hope.”

Samaritan’s Purse, a ministry affiliated with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, is known for its Operation Christmas Child program but has over 30 years of experience in disaster recovery. Eight Days of Hope, founded in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, has grown into a powerful force for mobilizing volunteers nationwide.

“It’s a privilege to partner with these exceptional ministries who serve the hardest-hit areas across the country,” Figaretti added. “Community members are welcome to join the effort. Simply choose Samaritan’s Purse or Eight Days of Hope, complete their online volunteer form at www.newbridgechurch.us, and you’ll be equipped to serve in no time.”

Local resident and Eight Days of Hope national leadership team member Preston Smith shared a personal perspective.

“I’ve traveled nationwide to help communities recover from disasters, but I never imagined it would hit so close to home,” he said. “The flooding is just over the hill from my house. When Eight Days of Hope called, I told them we need their help right here, and they’re on their way to serve our community with excellence.”

Residents needing help with flood cleanup including home cleaning, drywall removal, drying and sanitizing, can open a work order with one of the organizations. This can be done by contacting Samaritan’s Purse at 1-833-747-1234 or Eight Days of Hope at 1-662-255-7565; via email at rapidresponse@eightdaysofhope.com; or at newbridgechurch.us.

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