When Mike Uhlan of Stuart, Florida and Jerry Henderson of
Fort Pierce Florida heard that a hurricane was headed toward the east coast,
they began preparations for deployment.
Uhlan had previously responded to six
disasters with the American Red Cross including a month driving an Emergency
Response Vehicle (ERV) in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria hit the island. Henderson had never deployed to a disaster
before but his wife deployed to Virginia as a volunteer with their local Red
Cross chapter and he was inspired to follow her lead.
 |
| Mike Uhlan and Jerry Henderson package hot meals for residents in Marlboro County. Photo by: Kate Walters |
While Uhlan was working full-time in the aerospace industry,
he served as a volunteer for his local fire department. After he retired, it
was a natural fit for him to join the efforts of the Red Cross as is often the
case with many of our volunteers who have previous work or volunteer experience
in emergency management fields.
Mike and Jerry joined forces on the day they arrived at their
local chapter in Florida and partnered as ERV drivers to support recovery
efforts in South Carolina.
Emergency Response Vehicles are specifically designed
to deliver food and other supplies such as clean up kits directly to people
when they need it most. There are two different types of emergency vehicles being
used throughout the disaster; a Ford E450 Heavy Duty diesel vans converted
after their service as ambulances or an adapted version of the Mercedes Sprint.
ERVs are equipped to carry large quantities both in bulk and weight. They have
large windows that provide convenient access for meal distribution.
Ulhan and Henderson, along with 7 other ERV teams converged
at Hoffmeyer Road Baptist Church where the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief Organization
had taken on the daunting task of preparing meals to feed 7,000 people.
Volunteers helped load more than 300 hot meals onto each vehicle which were
then distributed to communities in and around Florence, SC.
 |
RVs are lined up at Hoffmeyer Road Baptist Church
to be
loaded with hot meals. Photo by Walt Palmer
|
Three ERV teams traveled just over an hour to the Marlboro
County Courthouse, in Bennettsville, twice that day to serve hot meals for
lunch and dinner. They were met with very thankful residents, many of whom lost
household power and the food in their refrigerators had spoiled.
“This flood has made life more difficult for people who are
already experiencing a great need. The Red Cross delivers two hot meals every
day with kindness and compassion, uplifting the spirits of our citizens,” said
Dr. Carolyn A. Price, Chair of the Marlboro County Council.
When the lines of hungry people began to diminish, a local
principal and several teachers told the pair about a neighborhood that was
still behind a barrier of floodwaters. Without hesitation the two ERV drivers
transported the food directly to the affected area, accompanied by the
Benettsville Intermediate School staffers. The community members identified areas of need
and the ERV drivers responded. Grateful residents then waded through the waters
to access the warm meals for their families. Over the course of about 2 hours
they distributed 300 meals.
 |
Charminique Ross takes hot lunch across
the flood waters to
her mother. Photo by Kate Walters
|
There are people who just don’t have the resources to be
able to put up a large enough stockpile of food in case of a disaster. They’re
trying to make ends meet every day. When a hurricane comes through they are
often without employment for long stretches of time. They find themselves in a
very difficult situation. That is when the Red Cross comes in to help ease
their suffering.
“We want to bring the people what they need, where they need
it, when they need it.” Says Brad Keiserman, Red Cross Vice President of
Operations and Logistics.
As the water continues to rise along the Pee Dee and
Waccimaw Rivers, the Red Cross is preparing and responding to the needs of the
people affected by higher water levels. As of this writing, Red Cross continues
to deliver over 6,000 meals twice a day by way of Emergency Response Vehicles.
No comments:
Post a Comment