For Starkville Police Department Cpl. Mandy Wilson, disasters can make the world a little bit smaller.
Wilson has family who lives in the Denham Springs area near Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where flooding brought on by heavy rains over the weekend has devastated much of the area.
Wilson said her mother and stepfather made it through the rains safe and dry, but the floods affected some of her extended family much more.
She added she’s learned since the flooding began that a lot of people in and around Starkville also have connections to the region.
“I know there are a lot of people in this area who still have family connections and friends down there,” Wilson said. “It’s been amazing to see how small the world really is at times.”
Teresa Scott, a representative with Golden Triangle Horse Rescue, said the organization has two volunteers who have family in the Denham Springs area.
“Their vehicles are history, their homes have been destroyed,” she said. “The water has dropped in some areas. Now they’ve got to remove the sheet rock and put floors in to fight the mold.”
Golden Triangle Horse Rescue is collecting supplies for flood victims. Once donations fill one horse trailer, she said volunteers will take them to distribute to people in impacted areas.
As cleanup in south Louisiana begins in earnest, Scott said Golden Triangle Horse Rescue is focused on collecting supplies to help with that effort. Specifically, the group is seeking bottled water, bleach, garbage bags, work gloves, dust masks, crowbars, hammer, pump-up sprayers, first-aid supplies, hand sanitizer, sponges, scrub brushes, shop towels and buckets.
“What they desperately need is garbage bags,” Scott said. “These are things that people don’t really think of. They don’t think of the cleanup, but there’s a serious need for bleach, garbage bags, crowbars — anything they can use to clean and gut the houses.”
Scott said she is working to contact every hardware store in the Golden Triangle to request donations of bags, or smaller items that can be used to help cleanup.
For residents who are interested in donating, Scott said they don’t have to break the bank.
“People can spend as little as $10, and that will go a long way,” she said. “Several bottles of bleach, a box of garbage bags — it really goes a long way.”
Supplies for the drive can be dropped off in Columbus at The Commercial Dispatch at 516 Main Street and Advantage Financial Services at 429 Wilkins-Wise Road; in Starkville at Polion Promos at 506-3 Academy Road, Oktibbeha County Co-op at 201 Pollard Road, R&F Comfort Systems at 2364 Turkey Creek Road; and in West Point at the Clay County Co-op at 632 West Broad Street.
For more information, contact Golden Triangle Horse Rescue at 662-418-2333.
Salvation Army Columbus
Major Alan Phillips, commanding officer for Salvation Army Columbus, said his organization will hold a supply drive from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at 2219 Main St.
“There’s a lot going on down there,” Phillips said. “The reports that we’ve gotten are as many is 40,000 homes in 26 parishes have been affected and as many as 60,000 people have registered with FEMA.”
Phillips said Salvation Army crews fed 3,000 people in the areas around Baton Rouge on Tuesday.
Salvation Army is requesting bleach, mops, brooms, masks, gloves, paper towels, garbage bags, cleaning supplies, hygiene items and baby items.
Phillips said the organization is not collecting clothes at the moment because flood victims don’t have anywhere to store them.
He added the Salvation Army is seeking someone to donate a truck to take the supplies to Louisiana, but he will rent one if needed.
“It is a beautiful thing when communities get together to help our brothers and sisters in need,” Phillips said in a press release. “We are giving people in our area the opportunity to donate supplies to help those suffering in the flooded areas.”
For more information, contact the Salvation Army at 662-327-5137.
Starkville Police Department
Wilson said several people have approached her and asked how to help out. So, after some planning, Starkville Police Department and Animal Control are also collecting supplies to take to flood victims in Louisiana.
“It’s our responsibility to come together and help our neighbors no matter how close or far away they are,” Wilson said. “At any time, the tables could be turned, and we might be the ones in need.”
Wilson said SPD will deliver the first load on Sunday. The department is asking anyone who wants to donate to do so by Saturday afternoon.
“It you’re unable, we’ll be making another trip, possibly the next weekend,” she said. “Go ahead and get it to us, and we will definitely put it on the next trip.”
Wilson said SPD is seeking any thing that can help with cleanup, as well as toiletries for adults and children, and is also taking donations for animal supplies. Further, police are asking for non-perishable food items, batteries, flashlights, zip ties, box cutters, rope and jugs of water.
“The residents of Starkville and the Golden Triangle have always been amazing at coming together and providing for our state and neighboring states,” Wilson said. “We want to be able to show love for our neighbors and let them know we are here to help.”
Supply drop-off locations include: all temporary SPD locations; the Oktibbeha County Co-Op; the Oktibbeha County Humane Society, located at 510 Industrial Park Road; Rick’s Cafe, located at 319 B Highway 182 East; Smith Animal Hospital, located at 1415 Highway 389; and Spruill Property Management, located at 1016 Louisville St.
For more information about the SPD donation drive, contact Wilson at 662-769-4427 or Animal Control Officer Sarah Akins at 662-769-2728.
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
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