By Staff
Information &how you can help
Shoal Creek collections
Shoal Creek Baptist Church and Cave Spring Baptist Church have combined efforts and resources to send supplies to LaCome, La. where the First Baptist Church of LaCome was almost completely destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.
Members have donated diapers, bottled water, individual boxes of cereal, canned food with pop-tops, insect repellent and much more to assist the victims of that area.
All supplies, plus approximately $2,500 in cash donations, will be sent by truck today, Thursday, Sept. 8, by members of both churches.
"People are really generous," Harold Fanning, pastor of Shoal Creek Baptist, said. "I'm sure we'll be making more trips in the coming weeks and months. We can't help everyone, but we can help a few."
Nurses sought
The Red Cross is looking for nurses to help in the areas hit by Hurricane Katrina.
There is currently a critical need for nursing professionals. If you are a Registered Nurse (RN), Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) or Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) willing to volunteer, call 571-226-8221.
Red Cross donations
Morgan-Lawrence Chapter of the American Red Cross is collecting items for adult and children effected by Hurricane Katrina.
Adult comfort kits include: razors, shave gel or cream, shampoo, toothpaste, soap, adult-sized toothbrush, lotion, deodorant, tissues, wash cloth and comb.
Children's comfort kits include travel size soap, shampoo, toothpaste, youth toothbrush, wash cloths and combs.
Items may be dropped off at any of three locations: 700 Sparkman Street in Hartselle; 25700 Highway 24 (Gordon Terry Parkway) in Trinity; and 641 Big Nance Street in Moulton.
Call James Tardy at 353-4891 for additional information about the Red Cross and local assistance efforts.
Grant funds
A $4 million grant from the Department of Labor is designed to find temporary work for those Alabama residents who lost their jobs as a result of Hurricane Katrina. The grant will fund some 350 positions involved with the cleanup and recovery from the storm.
The grant will also be used to pay for repairs on homes of those eligible for federally funded weatherization programs, with priority given to services for the elderly and individuals with disabilities.
Red Cross contact
The American Red Cross can be reached at 1-800-HELP-NOW (1-800-435-7699) or at www.redcross.org
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is accepting donations of bottled water weekdays from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. at its offices at 2114 Oakwood Ave.
To donation to the Salvation Army, call 1-800-SAL-ARMY (1-800-725-2769) or go to www.salvationarmyusa.org.
Volunteer online
Alabamians who want to volunteer for disaster relief efforts can sign up over the internet through Gov. Bob Riley's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.
The website where Alabamians can sign up to volunteer is
www.servealabama.gov/.
Individuals are asked to provide their contact information and list skills they have that are especially helpful in hurricane recovery efforts, such as emergency medical training, and experience as heavy equipment operators, social workers and drivers.
Mall joins drive
Colonial Mall in Decatur is joining in the American Red Cross drive for hurricane victims.
The mall is collecting a variety of health items, as well as new blankets and pillows, gallon sized bags, crayons and activity books for children.
All items should be dropped off at the Customer Service Desk.
Donation sights
Donations of bottled water, cleaning supplies, canned food, insect repellent and personal hygiene products are especially needed for hurricane victims. Items can be taken to both Hartselle fire stations, Hartselle Utilities, Hometown Grocery and Kroger.
Benefit singing
Hartselle Wedding Chapel will host a gospel singing Sunday, Sept. 11, at 2 p.m. featuring The Colburns and many others to benefit the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Bring a tape and sing along. All are welcome and encouraged to attend. For more information, call 773-4697.
AG warning
Alabama residents are encouraged to open up their wallets to help victims of Hurricane Katrina, but Attorney General Troy King is urging caution be mixed with charity.
King said contributors should make sure they are dealing with charitable organizations they are familiar with, who have track records and histories that can easily be verified. Reputable and established relief organizations are more likely to be better equipped to assist victims faster and more effectively.
King also advises:
For more detailed guidelines and information, log onto www.give.org, the website for the Better Business Bureau's Wise Giving Alliance.
Educational help
Calhoun Community College and the Alabama Department of Postsecondary Education are working with any student currently enrolled in an Alabama College System institution who had to withdraw due to circumstances caused by Hurricane Katrina.
Affected students are eligible to have their state tuition and fees refunded for the fall term. For students enrolled in Mississippi and Louisiana public community, junior, or technical colleges unable to reopen due to catastrophic damage, tuition and fee scholarships will be awarded at Alabama College System institutions on a space-available basis.
Provisional enrollments will be processed with financial aid eligibilities assessed on a case-by-case basis.
For more information, contact the Calhoun Admissions Office at 306-2607, or Dr. Susan Price, Alabama Dept. of Postsecondary Education, at 334-242-2900.
State Parks used
Joe Wheeler State Park is among the Alabama state parks housing evacuees from hurricane-stricken areas.
Joe Wheeler has 116 campsites, 26 family cottages and 75 rooms. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is supplying trailers to serve as long-term housing.
Alabama's 22 state parks have a total of 2,500 campsites and more than 350 rooms in lodges, chalets and cabins across the state. Modern campsites have water and electrical hookups, and some have sewer hook-ups as well.
Health Department
Routine services at local county health departments may be interrupted as employees with the Alabama Department of Public Health respond to Hurricane Katrina. Health department officials said all resources are currently going to hurricane relief.
The department is working to provide medial assistance at shelters and in effected areas.
Local schools help
Money for Hurricane Katrina victims will be collected at every Hartselle High School home football game. Each person is asked to donate at least $1 as part of a statewide goal to raise $2.5 million.
Powerful storm
Hurricane Katrina appears to be the third most powerful hurricane to make landfall in the United States. Weather experts using barometric pressure said Katrina was even more intense than Andrew that devastated parts of Florida in 1992.
Barometric pressure is used to determine storm strength; the lower the pressure, the stronger the storm. Since records began being kept in 1851, only the Labor Day Hurricane that hit the Florida Keys in 1935 and Hurricane Camille in 1969 were stronger.
Two of the three – Camille and Katrina – made landfall in an area less than 50 miles apart from each other.
Andrew, which effected southeast Florida and southeast Louisiana in 1992 is listed by the National Weather Service Center as causing the most expensive damage. It caused some $26.5 billion in damages. Next is Charley which hit southwest Florida in 2004 and caused $15 billion, followed by Ivan at $14.2 billion. Ivan hit Alabama's Gulf Coast and northwest Florida in 2004.
Stronger storms
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology predict that the intensity and duration of hurricanes are likely to increase in coming years.
By analyzing storms dating back to 1930, the MI researchers found that a combined measure of duration and wind speeds of North Atlantic hurricanes and North Pacific cyclones has nearly doubled since the 1970s.
The report showed that the number of hurricanes and cyclone durations has increased by about 60 percent since 1949 and that average peak storm wind speeds have increased 50 percent, since the ''70s. During that same time, sea surface temperatures have swung upward at rates that exceed normal swings from regular El Nino or Atlantic cycles.