UPDATED 8/19/2016: Aid truck to go from Union County to Louisiana; help fill it up

New Albany, MS, Updated 8/19/2016- Donations have been rolling in for the truck collecting relief supplies for Louisiana flood victims. The truck will remain in the library parking lot until Saturday afternoon, so there is still time to make your contribution. Please do not bring clothes, instead please refer to the list of needed items in the original post below, and remember that many people still will not have power.

Truck from local firm VIP Seating delivering donations.

Union County residents answer call for aid for Louisiana flood victims.

Thursday afternoon, August 18th, Chrystal Coleman and her son Conner were among the first to donate items for the LA flood relief truck.

Original post-

Help fill a truck from Union County with items desperately needed by Louisiana flood victims, and, if you have time or resources, consider additional ways to help the people of our sister state.

Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Melissa Leake, United States Coast Guard

Since the storms began in Friday, many areas of Louisiana have seen a foot or more of rainfall. Starting last Thursday night, two feet of rain fell in Baton Rouge. There have been 13 deaths, and approximately 40,000 homes were affected in southeastern Louisiana alone. As of Monday night, 8,000 people were still in shelters and more than 20,000 people had been rescued. Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards has called the flooding “unprecedented.” This flooding has been called the worst natural disasters in  the US since Hurricane Katrina.

New Albany businessmen sponsor donation truck

Beginning at noon Thursday, and continuing through Saturday afternoon, an 18-wheeler truck will be parked in the City parking lot in front of the Union County Library to receive donations from Union County residents, for flood victims in Louisiana.

Roberts Trucking is one of the sponsors of this effort.

The truck is sponsored by Roberts Trucking (Blake and Alyson Roberts) and Rutledge and Davis Law Firm, both of New Albany. Plans are to have someone on hand to accept donations and load items each day from approximately 8AM until 7 PM.

According to Bill Rutledge, “We will try to find the place most in need of our items.” As of the time of this post, it is unknown where exactly the truck will go.

What do the flood victims need most?

The list of needs is overwhelming. Most collection sites say they already have adequate clothing donations,  so please consider other options.

Davis, Rutledge and Roberts all say, “We encourage all the folks of New Albany and Union County to give what they can for the flood victims.”

Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Melissa Leake

• DONATED ITEMS:
  • Bottled water
  • Non perishable foods that are packaged in bulk and that are individually wrapped and can be distributed individually and also that can be prepared either by warming or adding boiled water.
  • Toiletries: hand sanitizer, shampoo, conditioner, bar soap, hand soap, adult diapers, disposable razors, shaving cream, toilet paper
  • Cleaning supplies: Buckets, bleach, cleaning detergent, mops, Shockwave for mold, mops, brooms, paper towels, large garbage bags, rubber gloves, masks, scrub brushes, scouring pads, sponges, air freshener
  • Miscellaneous household items: napkins, disposable utensils, diapers for babies, baby wipes, baby food, baby formula, sippy cups and bottles
  • Pet items: pet cages, kennels, leashes, collars, pet food, cat litter
  • School supplies

• MONEY:
  • Red Cross has made it easy to make donations: you can either call 1-800-REDCROSS or text LAFLOODS to 90999 to automatically donate $10. Click here for other ways to donate money.
  • Check with your favorite charitable organization or church

• VOLUNTEERS: Volunteers are badly needed for a wide range of duties. According to Volunteer Louisiana, volunteers are needed for the following:
  • Shelters
  • Boats (volunteers who own boats)
  • Pets (medical care, fostering, etc)
  • Feeding at shelters for one meal or more
  • Clean up/mucking out of houses and businesses
  • Packing food boxes
  • Collecting and sorting donations
  • If you have time to help out with any of these volunteer opportunities, click this link to find out how to get involved. Check with your churches, civic organizations, etc. that may be making plans to help.