When disaster strikes, David Patty is usually on the other end of the chainsaw, so to speak.
“I’m not used to working this side of disaster relief,” said Patty, director of missions for Sand Mountain Baptist Association.
His association’s disaster relief team is usually one of the first to respond when the call comes for cleanup and recovery in other parts of Alabama and the nation.
But this time, Sand Mountain Association’s neighbors were coming to its aid instead after an EF-4 tornado splintered a 10-mile-long stretch in that area. The tornado was one of three that ripped through the state Feb. 5 as part of a larger storm system deemed the deadliest in 20 years. The Baptist-affiliated Union University in Jackson, Tenn., was among the hardest hit areas (see story, page 1).
The tornadoes killed five in Alabama, one of whom was in the Sand Mountain area. In that area alone, 44 homes were destroyed and still more were damaged.
Community effort
“DeKalb, Marshall and Tennessee River associations are all here working to help as many people as possible,” Patty said. “And the State Board of Missions (SBOM) through Cooperative Program funds has donated money to our local association and for us to share with the Rosalie Community Center.”
The community center, which is next door to Sand Mountain Association’s command central, is serving meals to 500–700 people each day, Patty said.
“It’s pretty overwhelming, but it’s all falling into place, thanks to all the help we’re getting,” he added.
In Muscle Shoals Baptist Association, DOM Robert Smith and other area Baptist leaders have worked to respond to victims of the tornado in their area.
“The Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions responded with financial aid for this situation also,” said Rick Lance, SBOM executive director. “We await word as to how we can be of further service.”
Local volunteers in Moulton and Fayette reported that they had already worked to clean up behind tornadoes that hit their areas, according to Tommy Puckett, state disaster relief director.
The call for help has mainly come from the Sand Mountain area, he said, noting that it was “by far the worst” of the three regions hit.
And at press time, no teams from the state had been called up yet to help in any other parts of the Southeast that got pounded by the 60-plus tornadoes that roared through Feb. 5.
“I don’t anticipate any calls out of the state, but they are still doing major assessment [in other regions], so a call could still come for trained teams,” Puckett said, noting that state Baptists are on standby if needed. (TAB)
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