Although the snow and ice from Winter Storm Fern has melted, the recovery efforts by Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief teams and volunteers are still going full speed, the Baptist and Reflector reported Feb. 11.
Wes Jones, disaster relief specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, said TBDR crisis cleanup currently has more than 2,000 job requests for the coming days.
“There’s a long way to go,” said Jones.
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The storm, which hit various parts of the state Jan. 25–27, brought historic amounts of ice to Tennessee, leaving more than 350,000 without power. TBDR teams — along with local churches — sprang into action, providing a variety of services to those impacted.
“I thank God for the churches, for the volunteers and for the Harvest Field leaders, who really stepped in and helped us with some special requests that came our way,” Jones said.
Jones noted that TBDR has about a dozen teams on the ground, and they have completed more than 130 job requests thus far. Jones said many volunteers jumped into the recovery process immediately after the storm.
“I told the teams and the volunteers — just go ahead and get started,” he said. “You don’t have to wait for an email from me. Just go ahead and get moving. And a lot of them did. I am always grateful when the churches show initiative, and many of them certainly did that in this case.”
‘Big task’
Jones noted that North Carolina Disaster Relief has also sent teams — at his request — to help assist those in need. Additional teams will also be arriving from Texas next week, Jones said. He added that the Salvation Army and the Red Cross have also worked with TBDR during the recovery process.
The TBDR quick response unit, based in Jackson, traveled to Selmer and provided meals for the lineman for several days, feeding roughly 200 workers at breakfast, lunch and dinner each day.
“The crew from Jackson did a yoeman’s job,” said Jones. “It was a big task.”
TBDR was also asked to help provide food the National Guard at six different locations across the state. The TBMB Harvest Field leaders played a key role in getting churches involved in each of the six areas.
“I am extremely grateful for the role they played in this,” Jones said. “Thanks to a lot of teamwork, we got it done.”
Linden Valley Baptist Conference Center was hit hard by the storm, with the camp losing power, gas and its boiler system. Recovery efforts at the camp are likely to be on-going for several weeks, Jones said.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by David Dawson and originally published by the Baptist and Reflector.
