Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief deploys to Florida after Hurricane Isaias

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — About 50 Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers are working in the Florida Panhandle after Hurricane Isaias brought destructive winds, flooding, and widespread damage to the region.

Isaias made landfall Friday, Oct. 9, near Destin, Fla., as a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph. The storm damaged roofs and buildings, uprooted trees, and left nearly 900,000 customers without power in Florida and Alabama in the hours after landfall. At least four deaths were linked to the storm.

Georgia Baptist teams are serving in Crestview, Niceville, Fort Walton, and surrounding communities, where they are removing storm-damaged trees.

“The hurricane was bad, but not near as bad as it could have been,” Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief Director Dwain Carter said. “Most of the power that was lost has been restored currently, so the main need is recovery work — chainsaw work.”

Four chainsaw teams are part of the approximately 50-member Georgia contingent. The deployment also includes shower and laundry, incident management, family care, assessment, chaplain, and volunteer feeding teams, along with a GBDR bunkhouse.

Crews brought four skid steers, a mini excavator, and a generator supplied by Send Relief, as well as the vehicles and other equipment needed to support the operation.

Unlike some disaster responses, Georgia Baptists have not been asked to conduct mass feeding for residents. The feeding team is preparing three meals each day for the volunteers working at the site. Florida Baptist Disaster Relief is conducting mass feeding operations in other affected areas.

Jim Croome is serving as the initial site incident commander, with Jerry Allen scheduled to take over during the second week. Carter also plans to remain on site for about two weeks.

At present, Georgia Baptists are handling the assignment at their site without assistance from another state convention, although Arkansas Baptist Disaster Relief has agreed to help if additional crews are needed.

Southern Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers from Mississippi, South Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana, the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, Texans on Mission, and Florida are also responding in other areas.

Carter placed Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers on alert Thursday afternoon as forecasts showed the hurricane approaching. By Saturday afternoon, GBDR had moved to standby status and then to “go” status, allowing crews to begin deploying Monday morning.

“I wanted us to be ready to deploy in Georgia if the need was there. Praise God, for the most part Georgia was spared from damage,” he said.

“GBDR volunteers are always ready to respond,” Carter said. “We have been training about seven times a year for the past four years so we can answer the call when God puts us in the game.”

Carter said the cost of fuel, trucks, and equipment has risen sharply. “But," he continued, "because of faithful giving to the Cooperative Program and donors who give directly to the ministry of Disaster Relief, God continues to meet the needs of the DR ministry."

Carter emphasizes that the recovery work is a means to a greater purpose. “We do everything we do so we can share the love of Jesus with everyone we come in contact with,” he said.

“Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief is not a humanitarian aid ministry,” Carter said. “We are a gospel-advancing ministry using humanitarian aid to share the gospel," he said, citing Ephesians 2:10 (For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for the good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them).

That purpose, he said, is also behind the urgency to deploy. “We deploy fast because we don’t want to miss the opportunity to share the practical ministry of Jesus.”