September 19, 2024
STATESBORO, Ga. — In the wake of the passing of Tropical Storm Debby, Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief will deploy a team of assessors to determine the extent of damage to homes in Bulloch and Evans counties. The assessors will arrive in Statesboro on Monday and begin the task of identifying and locating some of the reported 200 affected homes.
Dwain Carter, mission mobilization/Disaster Relief director for the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, says the extent of relief efforts will be determined by what they find.
If initial reports of flood damage are accurate, Carter expects to deploy three recovery units, showers, a volunteer feeding team, an incident management team, chaplains and family support teams. The teams will comprise 40 to 50 volunteers for a period of two to three weeks.
Carter says the team will be based at Southbridge Community Church in Statesboro.
Though Debby didn't bring catastrophic flooding to the Savannah area as forecasters initially feared, the storm dumped 10 inches Monday and Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. Some residents of Southeast Georgia were warned to brace for additional flooding Thursday, as rivers swollen with rainfall overflowed their banks.
Emergency officials in Effingham County called for residents of two roads near the Ogeechee River to evacuate Thursday. In neighboring Chatham County, which includes Savannah, officials were allowing residents to decide whether to leave.
“Expect water where you have not seen water before,” Chatham County Commission Chairman Chester Ellis told a news conference. He added: “If you have a substantial amount of water in your yards, I would say evacuate now while you still have a chance.”
Chatham County officials said rescue teams with boats had already taken 17 people to safety from homes threatened by river flooding. Ellis estimated more than 250 people live in the area.
