Kentucky Baptist Chainsaw Teams Head to Milton, Fla., Three Weeks After Hurricane Isaias
Twenty volunteers are bringing tree-removal crews and heavy equipment to a Florida Panhandle county where more than 2,000 structures were damaged.
See where this is ›BOWLING GREEN, Ky. —
Two Kentucky Baptist Disaster Relief chainsaw teams with 20 volunteers are traveling to Milton, Fla., this week to help residents recover from Hurricane Isaias, Kentucky Today reported. The teams were to gather Sunday, Nov. 1, at the South Central Baptist Association's headquarters in Bowling Green, Ky., and travel south together.
See where this is ›The volunteers will remove trees, tarp roofs and clean up storm damage, according to Managing Editor Mark Maynard of Kentucky Today. Jeff Free and Rod Hutchinson will lead the teams as “Blue Hats.” They are taking a compact wheel loader named Kermit, a manlift named Gumby and the association's new tractor.
Kentucky Baptist Disaster Relief Director Ron Crow said he is “blessed to lead volunteers from the Kentucky Baptist Disaster Relief family.” He cited Philippians 1:3-5 and asked people to pray for the volunteers as they travel and serve. The work is funded through the Cooperative Program.
Isaias came ashore near Destin, Fla., at 9:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9, as a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds near 105 mph, WPTV reported, citing Gov. Ron DeSantis. By Oct. 13, DeSantis counted six deaths in Florida, two directly from the storm and four from later effects or recovery, the News Service of Florida reported.
Milton is in Santa Rosa County, where a mid-October report by WALA listed more than 2,000 structures damaged, around 300 with major damage and more than 80 destroyed. The same report estimated 1.5 million cubic yards of debris and $23 million in county cleanup costs. It listed the Crisis Cleanup line, 1-800-451-1954, for residents who need cleanup help.
What we don't know yet: How long the Kentucky teams will stay and which neighborhoods they will serve. Kentucky Today did not say, and the damage figures here date from mid-October.
