Hurricane Jeanne slams state, Florida Baptists mobilize units

Photo by John J. Hannigan III

PORT ST. LUCIE (FBW)-Florida Baptist Disaster Relief officials were already making plans to respond to Hurricane Jeanne early Sept. 26 as nearly two million Floridians were without power after the Category 3 storm blasted ashore with 120 mph winds and crashing waves—yanking trees out of the ground, tearing off rooftops and spreading miles of debris on already water-logged terrain.

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It is the first time since 1886 when four hurricanes blasted through Texas in a single season that four hurricanes have hit a state successively. In Florida, Category 3 Hurricane Jeanne followed Charley, Frances and Ivan. Jeanne, a 400-mile diameter storm, followed Frances’ path inland west and north Sunday afternoon, stirring debris left from the other storms.

About 2.6 million people in 54 counties were still without power from Jeanne as of Sept. 27. Nearly 47,000 people in the Panhandle were still without power in the area hit by Ivan. Officials feared many could be without power for three weeks or more.

Yet even as Jeanne continued on its track west-northwest through the state, Cecil Seagle, director of the missions division for the Florida Baptist Convention, headquartered in Jacksonville, told Florida Baptist Witness the response will stretch from “the Panhandle to Palm Beach.” He said the convention staff, after serving for more than six weeks—since the landfall of Hurricane Charley Aug. 13—are standing strong.

“Our folks have been stretched beyond measure, but have remained focused on Him and His goodness,” Seagle said.

And throughout Florida where Charley tore apart homes and businesses; Frances flooded rivers, creeks and ponds; and Ivan drove sand, rain, houses and trees inland—the attitude remains hopeful and optimistic.

“The people of Florida are a resilient people,” Seagle said. “We’ve come to realize that Jesus Chris is sufficient in the toughest of times and he’s sufficient in the midst of the storms.

Sept. 27, the Convention reported at least a half dozen Southern Baptist mobile feeding units were moving into place to provide hot meals to Central Florida residents battered by Hurricane Jeanne

Units were dispatched to First Baptist Church of Stuart, First Baptist Church of Melbourne, Cornerstone Fellowship Baptist Church in Sebastian and First Baptist Church of Port St. Lucie. Mobile kitchens also may be deployed to two additional sites: Westside Baptist Church in Fort Pierce and First Baptist Church, Vero Beach. A child care unit might also be in place at Vero Beach.

Another seven feeding units are on standby and will be called in when needed. Possible sites for these units are First Baptist Church of Sebring, First Baptist Church of the Mall, Lakeland, and somewhere near Suwanne or Old Towne, according to Fritz Wilson, director of the Florida Baptist Men and coordinator of the Florida Baptist Disaster Relief efforts.

Wilson spent Sunday, the day after the storm, driving through the affected area to assess damage.

Flooding is the main concern, he said, noting that Barefoot Bay was hit hard and a bridge connecting the area with Sebastian was washed out. Fellsmere was covered in a foot of water, he reported.

Flooding will also be a problem further south and west, he said, noting that further assessments are being made in Okeechobee, Lake Placid and Chiefland and Inglis.

“What was damaged by Hurricane Frances seems to have sustained even more damage at Jeanne’s hands as residents were in the midst of cleaning up and repairing the damage from the first storm,” Wilson explained.

A satellite operations center to funnel volunteer teams to help in the clean-up and recovery will be established at First Baptist Melbourne, the same location where similar services were provided in the aftermath of Hurricane Frances, which took an almost identical path when it struck the area on Labor Day weekend.

Meanwhile, eight mobile kitchens will remain in Pensacola. Wilson said Florida has used 40 of Southern Baptists’ 100 mobile kitchens in the state since Hurricane Charley struck. In that storm, more than 200 units—including clean-up and recovery, child care, laundry and shower units were brought into the state.

The Florida Baptist Convention will provide clean up and recovery efforts on three fronts: Northwest Panhandle, with satellite operations located at Olive Baptist Church in Pensacola; Central Florida with the Melbourne operations center; and Southwest Florida through a warehouse operations in Sarasota.

Coordination of the three operational sites will be handled at the Baptist Building in Jacksonville.

To volunteer, please contact the Florida Baptist Men’s Department at 800-226-8584, ext.3121. Financial contributions for relief efforts may be sent to the Florida Baptist Convention, 1230 Hendricks Avenue, Jacksonville, FL, 32207. For credit card donations please call 800-226-8584, ext. 3049.

[With reporting by Barbara Denman, Florida Baptist Convention]