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Salvation Army Continues to Feed and Support Flood Victims

Food, water, and home clean up kits are being handed out to flood victims in Oneida county and the Mohawk Valley.   The Salvation Army is helping Central New York families to stabilize and even rebuild after the floods. 

When I spoke to Incident Commander Major James Purvis, he was en-route to Oneida with over one thousand meals.

"We have about 500 hotdogs and some goulash that is prepared and we will be giving that out to the folks up there as well. Again, having the disaster kits, bottled water, potato chips, granola bars, fruit bars, all those things.”

This week, they have given out more than five thousand four hundred meals to Mohawk Valley residents. Purvis says their priority now is getting people fed and to provide cleaning kits for “mucking out” homes. Most of the relief work is being done by private organizations like the Salvation Army and others; FEMA cannot act until they receive a Federal Disaster Declaration. Purvis emphasizes that personal safety is still the most important concern.

“First of all, pay attention to the weather. If they tell you to get out of town, you really need to get out of the way. The last thing you want to do is get stuck, and we’ve seen some things in the past where even death can occur when people don’t heed the warnings and advice. You can always get out of town and you can always get back to it.”
 

Bottled water and packaged foods are always welcome donations. More information on how to help can be found online at salvationarmyempirestate.org.