More Katrina Links

Another katrina blog, this one from someone relatively close to the action.

For the few of you who, like me, have no TV, if you want to see some before and after pictures, you can go check it out here. It might seem weird to some, but for me, I have not had TV or ever seen TV footage of the World Trade Center going down, of the Tsunami, of all those hurricanes that rocked Florida last year, or any images of war. I find that without the pictures, it's easy not to care that much. Yes, I can care intellectually, but with the addition of photos, my heart gets a lot more involved. I'm a lot more inclined to remember, to pray, to think about ways to help.

Here is something really interesting, that isn't just a Katrina thing. It's the ALERT Academy. ALERT stands for The Air Land Emergency Resource Team. It's a Christian-based organization that trains and educates young men (as young as 17) in firefighting, rapelling, swift- water rescue, and lots more in order to help people in desperate emergency situations. Groups from ALERT are on their way to the Astrodome in order to serve. What an amazing opportunity for young men who are interested in a future career in military or emergency service work! WOW! They also have training for young ladies in emergency preparedness and service. Here is a recent update from the ALERT site:

A team of four ALERT medics is currently in the city of Lafayette, LA, just west of New Orleans. They are relieving the wearied medical personnel who have been working 24-hour shifts. The team went in conjunction with the East Texas Medical Center. They will be providing triage, handling ambulance runs, and assisting with loading and unloading medical choppers.

The team at the Astrodome in Houston has been working non-stop, around the clock. The men have been enlisted to handle a variety of jobs including crowd control, security, crowd care, logistics, and checking-in the refugees. In addition to these tasks, men have been setting up cots and sleeping quarters, unloading buses, and generally doing what they can to keep things in order amidst the chaos at the Astrodome. ALERT men are also stationed at a complex across the street from the Astrodome that is being used to house and feed the refugees.

The ALERT men leaving tomorrow morning will be working with the Friend Ships ministry from Lake Charles, LA. They will be deployed to Gretna, LA, a southern suburb of New Orleans, which is completely surrounded by water and is not receiving necessary food and water. Water and MRE’s will be distributed immediately, then a field kitchen set for hot and healthy meals to be served.

Back here in Big Sandy, the ALERT campus has been opened up, free of charge, to meet the needs of the hurricane refugees headed to East Texas. Families have already begun taking rooms on the campus. Donations are being taken to help feed and care for these displaced people. Several ministry-minded Friend-of-ALERT families have volunteered to come help with the daily needs here on campus related to care and hospitality for the disaster victims.

The response from our Cadet ranks is very encouraging. Though we are not at liberty to take these young men and their fathers into the heart of the disaster area, there continues to be a myriad of ways they are able to be a part of the ministry to victims.

We are excited to have, for the first time, a response from the ladies that have completed our STEP program. Skills Training for Emergency Preparedness is a program for young ladies ages 15 and older held here on the ALERT Academy camps each summer. A team of older STEP ladies is scheduled to relieve an ALERT team at an evacuation center in Nacogdoches, TX, Saturday morning. ALERT was requested to help set up and establish the center and has completed that commitment, but our STEP team has been asked to help staff the center during the next days.

ALERT funds their work through private donations. See their web site for more information.