Baptist and Reflector
MOUNT JULIET — Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief teams are needed in the aftermath of weekend storms that left major damage throughout West and Middle Tennessee.
“We have a lot of damage across the state from the Alabama-Mississippi lines all the way through Clarksville and surrounding counties,” said Wes Jones, disaster relief specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Convention. He added that at least 14 counties reported damage.
Most of the damage was done by straight line winds of up to 70-75 miles per hour, Jones reported.
The Jackson Sun reported Oct. 26 that the towns of Adamsville in McNairy County and Parsons in Decatur County both suffered severe damage with multiple trees down and heavy damage to a number of homes and businesses in those areas.
Wes Jones
WKRN (Channel 2 in Nashville) reported Oct. 27 that the mayor of Decatur County had declared a state of emergency and set up a shelter relocation in the waiting room of the Decatur County Hospital in Parsons.
As of Monday, Oct. 28, Jones had not heard about storm damage from East Tennessee.
Jones said four to five Tennessee Baptist DR teams were working on Sunday, Oct. 27, in Clarksville, Waverly, Parsons and Adamsville.
A combined DR team from Beech River Baptist Association and Woodland Baptist Church in Brownsville assisted Decatur County in clearing a local road so residents could pass through, Jones noted.
Numerous DR teams are needed, especially chainsaw crews, Jones stressed. “We need all hands on deck.” He added that he may reach out to other states for assistance if needed.
Teams will be needed for at least two to three weeks, depending on the number of teams that respond, Jones estimated.
In addition, Tennessee DR volunteers are manning a shower and laundry trailer unit in Memphis in response to people who were affected by a tornado which struck the area early last week.
If you are able to respond, contact Wes Jones at wjones@tnbaptist.org or Elizabeth Holmes at eholmes@tnbaptist.org.
To donate to disaster relief, visit tndisasterrelief.org/contributions and click on either the 2019 Tornadoes Fund or General Disaster Relief. B&R
