Gustav Response...and also, hello!

Hi, I am the mysterious Caitlin that de Veer has been talking about. I've been holding down the fort since June as we search for a new Executive Director, and it has been a wild ride so far...particularly the past few days. I've been sending the brief, weird updates to the left through Twitter.com, from the Red Cross shelter most of the HOGC team was assigned to through the storm. We worked for about 3 days straight to prepare the HOGC base in case we got flooded/tornadoed/or lost power/water, then with the Red Cross to help stage their shelters across Harrison and Hancock counties, then checking in and feeding the fine folks who turned out at Stennis Space Center over in Hancock county. Many of our volunteers worked around the clock, and our team really pulled together to assist before, during and after the storm. I am so proud to be a part of this organization right now!

Yesterday and today we've been working on getting our heads around the damage and needs in the area affected by Gustav, and how we can best respond. HOGC and our partner, HopeForce International, are sending a small team of volunteers and AmeriCorps members over to an area just south of Houma, to a town called Chauvin, LA. They will be working to assess the damage in this area tomorrow with the local fire department, and will be housed in the fire station. In the next few days they will begin tarping roofs and clearing debris, as well as working to determine the long term response needs and the capacity for a larger team of volunteers.
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We have received huge support from the Hands On Network and Points of Light staff, as well as The Home Depot, all of whom mobilized literally overnight to support our response effort. An enormous THANK YOU to all of the support we've already received, and to all of the volunteers already registered to help out...we are looking forward to working with you!!

I also traveled to Hancock county today to check out Bay St. Louis, Waveland and Pearlington, and it seems Gustav has been fairly merciful. Some neighborhoods did take quite a bit of water, and we heard about 100 homes were flooded in the area, but the storm surge did not seem to be particularly violent, and the volunteer organizations in the area seem to be acting very quickly to address the needs. We will be helping Presbyterian Disaster Assistance rebuild their volunteer camp so they can begin to receive volunteers, and we also stopped by the PearlMart and they seemed to be in good shape. We will be working with the Volunteer Reception Center (VRC) being set up by Volunteer Gulf Coast to receive any work orders and deploy volunteers, but the damage seems to be fairly manageable with the great organizations already working in Hancock county. We will continue to stay in touch with our partner organizations to respond to any further need as people begin to return to their homes and survey their own damage.

I will be traveling to Chauvin on Friday to check out the work our team has been doing and to check out the capacity for the area to receive volunteers, and we will most definitely be working with Hands On New Orleans and Volunteer Baton Rouge, as well as the VRC in Louisiana to deploy volunteers. If you want to come down and help out, please visit www.volunteerlouisiana.gov to register with the VRC...we will be directing all out of state volunteers to this VRC to connect them with organizations to make the recovery effort as orderly and impactful as possible. There will be plenty of work to do clearing debris, tarping, mucking out homes and gutting (AND MOLD REMEDIATION, OF COURSE!!), so as soon as we are able to secure housing, food, and to assess the extent of the work, we would love to have all of ya'll's help!

Take care,

Caitlin

Gustav, Update 2

What are we up to?  At this point, we're still awaiting all the damage assessments from the Mississippi Gulf Coast. 

Flooding has receded in most, if not all, areas, but residents have been encouraged not to return until today, though according to the Sun Herald many came home yesterday.  Highway 90 is closed for repairs.  Check here for the Sun Herald's city-by-city report.

While we're waiting for damage assessments in our communities, we plan to check out Pearlington, Mississippi to see what sort of assistance is needed and what assistance we could provide.  They were were hit with flooding again.  More to come later this evening.

At this time, both Hands On Gulf Coast and Hands On New Orleans are directing those who want to volunteer to the Louisiana Volunteer Reception Center (VCR).  You can find out more information on their website www.VolunteerLouisiana.gov.

Additionally, a small team of Hands On Gulf Coast volunteers will go with Hope Force to Houma, Louisiana for a two-week mission.  There, we will be assisting in the initial stages of disaster recovery.  Our focus will be on tarping roofs, cutting away trees, and performing general debris clean up.

As with each disaster, we can use your support for these operations.  Gas stations are closed in Houma, so all fuel needs to be brought in.  Additionally, we need to purchase tarps to put on people's roofs.  Please support our efforts by donating for our emergency operations efforts.  Your generous support is always appreciated by those who receive our services.

Gustav Report

As you can see, the HOGC Base seems to have weathered the storm well. There is little apparent damage. Power was on and food doesn't seem to have spoiled in the fridge.



Initial reports from Harrison, Jackson, and Hancock Counties are that there was damage, but it's not nearly as significant as there could have been. There were downed trees and flooding, particularly around Point Cadet and East Biloxi.

Until we get a more full assessment on the site, check out the news on SunHerald.com.  Here are some links to region-wide stories:

• SunHerald Gustav image gallery
• Gustav Damage Report, SunHerald.com
• Harrison County Report, SunHerald.com
• Hancock County Report, SunHerald.com

Ominous Skies

Photo of the skies. Courtesy of Caitlin Brooking's cell phone.

Hurricane Gustav Preparations

We have been watching the developments of Hurricane Gustav closely.  For those of you interested in what we plan to do, please read below:

• Hands On Gulf Coast staff and AmeriCorps members will work with the Red Cross of South Mississippi to run evacuation shelters on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
• Hands On Gulf Coast is on call with Harrison County Emergency Management post-storm for debris removal duty.
• Hands On Gulf Coast is on desk to assist in the management of unaffiliated volunteers who might come to the area to help with storm damage.
• Hands On Gulf Coast is in communication with Hands On New Orleans.  Depending on the severity of damage and where the most need is, Hands On Gulf Coast staff and AmeriCorps members may help with New Orleans recovery efforts.

If you are interested in coming down to volunteer after Hurricane Gustav passes, please call before you arrive.  Given the commitments to local emergency agencies and potentially to Hands On New Orleans, we need to provide you with the most current information regarding capacity and greatest need.

The phone number to contact is still: 228.257.6094.

We will continue to post information about our activities on this site.  Also, check out the Gustav Updates (via Twitter) in the right-hand column of the blog and on our Twitter site: http://twitter.com/hogc.

Let's continue to hope Hurricane Gustav weakens, or at minimum fails to strengthen before it arrives on the Gulf Coast.