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Inland Communities Not Forgotten by Red Cross
Written by
Bonnie Gillespie
, Staff Writer and Photographer, RedCross.org
Friday, August 20, 2004 — ARCADIA, Fla. When Hurricane Charley roared ashore on Aug. 13, the same destructive winds that pummeled cities along Charlotte Bay ripped across scores of unsuspecting inland communities as well. More than 30 miles from the water’s edge, the tiny town of Arcadia suffered severely in Charley’s wake, with hundreds of homes destroyed and the historic downtown ransacked by winds.
Still without power, water and phone, the persevering people of Arcadia are leaning on each other, and the American Red Cross. Maintaining the town’s only shelter since the storm struck, the refuge itself has been wrought with challenges and changed location three times. A nerve-wracking roof collapse at the height of the hurricane sent evacuees scrambling from the local civic center to the high school across the street. Then leaking ceilings shifted residents again to a nearby middle school.
Carla Whigham and her grandchildren Mechala and Javier have been at the Red Cross shelter in Arcadia since the night of the hurricane. |
However, both residents and Red Cross volunteers have taken it all in stride, and other relief organizations have also pitched in to help. Players and entertainers from the Miami Heat professional basketball team even visited the rural community yesterday to help keep the remaining 200 shelter residents smiling.
“We’ve had fun here,” said Mechala Wooten, a nine-year-old girl who has been at the shelter since the storm with her grandmother and siblings. “Our house, part of the roof is gone so we’re just going to have to stay here for awhile. But the people are all nice and everything is free, so it’s ok.”
Even with an optimistic spirit prevailing among the younger residents, many older local volunteers have glimpsed the reality of what families are facing.
“Most of the people that are still here are here because they lost their homes,” said Cory Fournier, who has been helping at the shelter since the storm hit. “I’m lucky, my house is ok, but these people have it tough. I mean, it’s great to be able to help out, but we all do still need basic things – like a shower.”
Bathing at the shelter entails taking two gallon jugs of water into the locker room of the school gym and pouring it over oneself. Yet with five Red Cross service centers in the affected areas opening yesterday, one of which is in Arcadia, many displaced residents hope Red Cross assistance will help them begin the journey toward normal life again.
Red Cross service centers will allow Floridians affected by Hurricane Charley to register on site for financial disaster assistance, while also providing a distribution point for emergency supplies and personal items and offering mental health counseling services for those struggling to cope with such a traumatic experience.
Yet other hurricane victims like Carol Bartlett have already utilized another avenue of Red Cross service – the 866-GET-INFO hotline. Bartlett hopes that between Red Cross and FEMA assistance and a small insurance policy, she will be able to rent a new home because the trailer she shared with her two children and granddaughter was completely demolished.
“It’s really hard, but you know we were able to salvage some things and many people had nothing left,” she said, squinting in the bright Florida sunlight. “Right now I’m trying to get to that back pile to get to my granddaughter’s Christmas presents that were in my closet to see if maybe I can save some of them.”
“We’re ok, though,” Bartlett added. “And our neighbors are really all helping each other, cleaning up and everything. There’s a lot of love here. You can feel it.”
Arcadia resident Cory Fournier receives a hug from a Red Cross volunteer. |
Eleven mobile kitchens are now stationed in southwestern Florida, each cooking more than 20,000 meals a day for hurricane victims like Bartlett and her neighbors. But with the storm-related deaths now at 22, more than $11 billion in damages and almost 400,000 residents still without power, the plight of Floridians affected by the storm continues.
You can help the victims of Hurricane Charley and thousands of other disasters across the country each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to those in need. Call 1-800-HELP NOW or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting our Online Donation Page.
Those affected directly by the storm should call 1-866-GET-INFO to register with the Red Cross for disaster assistance.
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