Anchorage, ALASKA—Earlier this month, the western coast of Alaska was slammed by two different typhoon events. This brought destructive winds and severe flooding to numerous Alaska Native villages along the coast. According to the state, more than 2,000 people are displaced. Some homes were moved off their foundations while others are completely covered by water.
On Thur., Oct. 16, Oklahoma Baptist Associate Disaster Relief (DR) Director Ryan Deatherage traveled to Anchorage at the request of Alaska DR director Gary Bearce to represent Oklahoma DR and help coordinate response efforts.
According to officials, there is a two-week window for transport of residents and clean-up efforts to happen before the weather shuts down travel to and from the affected villages for the winter. Due to this, the focus of the DR response is to get affected residents to safety, securing temporary food and shelter and working on long-term housing through the winter.
“Alaska DR was able to get a shower and laundry unit set up in Anchorage to provide for that need,” said Jason Yarbrough, Oklahoma DR director. “While volunteers will definitely be needed to help with the recovery efforts, that opportunity may be a few months away due to weather conditions.”
Oklahoma DR’s cooperation with Alaska DR and other DR programs within the Southern Baptist Convention is a great picture of the partnership the network provides.
“The response of state directors and Send Relief sending donations and offering volunteer teams is what the SBDR network is all about,” said Yarbrough. “For us as Oklahoma Baptists to have someone we could send to be boots on the ground and meet the specific need that Gary had is a blessing.”
Oklahoma DR stands ready to continue assistance in bringing help, hope and healing to those impacted by the floods in Alaska.
For more information about Oklahoma DR, visit www.okdisasterhelp.org. Financial donations to DR to assist in flood and other natural disaster recovery efforts can also be made on the DR website.
