Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR) is calling for those with skills and needed equipment to help clear wood debris that remains in coastal Alabama counties as a result of hurricanes which hit the area last year.
LDR is a cooperative program of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
In a May 18 e-mail, LDR Director Heather L. Feltman made the appeal — especially for “persons who are skilled with wood chippers and have the equipment available to be used in southern Alabama coastal counties. Large industrial wood chippers are preferred with skilled operators.”
“This will allow us to make a significant impact in converting this debris to mulch and limit the risk this debris may cause in this upcoming hurricane season,” she said in her e-mail.
“Time is of the essence,” Feltman wrote. “Many of these counties do not have the infrastructure or equipment to handle this scale of debris. Debris that has not been removed also circumvents the rebuilding process and becomes a significant health and safety concern.”
Feltman said that LDR “is still actively involved in the long-term recovery of last year’s storm — four hurricanes that struck in a six-week time period. Many people are living in homes that are yet to be rebuilt, [with] leaking roofs, broken windows, mold-infested rooms.”
To volunteer or for more information, contact Feltman at (773) 380-2719.
Posted May 27, 2005
