TEMA Provides Transportation After Brief Chattanooga Visit
posted September 4, 2008
) Photo by Virginia Webb |
Red Cross Officials were notified that they would be winding down their shelter operations for those clients who were evacuated by FEMA late in the day on Thursday.
After a week of caring for as many as 250 evacuees Red Cross staff, volunteers and the agencies involved in supporting the care of the evacuees will be focusing on getting their lives back to normal.
John Hitchens, director of emergency services for the Greater Chattanooga Area Red Cross, said, "We have had tremendous support from the community and area businesses. The hard work of everyone involved has resulted in our clients having the best possible stay while they waited out the storm and its aftermath. By all accounts this has been a very successful operation."
The second shelter operating in the Salvation Army center across the street on Moore Road remains open for voluntary evacuees.
The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency provided four buses that will take the evacuees back home.
Amy Maxwell of Hamilton County EMS, said about 150 Gulf residents who had come here to escape Hurricane Gustav had no other way back.
Hamilton County EMS, the Red Cross, the Salvation Army and others have been tending to the needs of the displaced Gulf residents.
A police escort was provided for the buses.
Officials of the Chattanooga Salvation Army said they had spent more than $15,000 in meeting the emergency needs of Hurricane Gustav evacuees since last Saturday.
Salvation Army volunteers have served food and beverages from the Army’s mobile kitchen unit, served hot meals at the Red Cross shelter and manned its own shelter at The Salvation Army’s North Moore Road location.
“We anticipate evacuees to begin the trip home this weekend, but The Salvation Army will continue to serve until the last evacuee who came into the Chattanooga area is headed home,” said Major Jim Lawrence, Chattanooga Area Commander.
The Salvation Army is asking the public for monetary donations to defray the mounting expenses from the current disaster relief.
Monetary donations can be mailed to The Salvation Army, 800 McCallie Ave, Chattanooga, TN, 37403. Checks should be marked for “Chattanooga Relief.”
) Photo by Virginia Webb |
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