On August 29, Hurricane Ida made landfall in New Orleans on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Over the past week, NRB members have been stepping up to serve the communities impacted by the hurricane in both Louisiana and Mississippi.
As residents of Louisiana, Mississippi, and the Gulf Coast were evacuating in preparation for the hurricane, ministries like Samaritan’s Purse, Operation Blessing, and Somebody Cares America were positioning themselves to respond as soon as the storm passed.
“We’ve been in contact with friends and churches in Mississippi and Louisiana, as this is a widespread storm,” said Doug Stringer, Founder and President of Somebody Cares America and Somebody Cares International.
On Sunday, a team from Somebody Cares America was positioned in Southeast Texas so that they could enter the disaster areas as soon as possible to provide hot meals and assess the needs there.
“We know it’s always important to plan ahead so we can be positioned to move as quickly as possible,” Stringer said.
As Somebody Cares America has entered Louisiana, they are continuing to identify and empower local churches who share a Kingdom mindset, are working to reach their communities with the love of Jesus, and will be able to serve their neighbors for the long-term.
Your gift to Somebody Cares America will help them to respond to ongoing needs as quickly as possible.
Although the category 4 system has now passed through their communities and victims of Hurricane Ida have braved the storm, there is a long road of recovery ahead. Millions of residents have lost power—and will likely be without power for several weeks. Thousands of people returned to their communities to find their homes destroyed. And now Louisiana and Mississippi residents are left in the aftermath of the storm to deal with their recovery—a process that will have long-term impacts on those communities.
When Operation Blessing Disaster Relief teams arrived on the Gulf Coast, they witnessed the devastation caused by the storm. After accessing the needs there, they are now coming alongside residents affected by the storm and seeking to provide relief to meet their most immediate needs—distributing supplies, clearing homes, and ministering to hurting residents.
Please continue to pray for Ida recovery, Ida victims, and Operation Blessing volunteers as they begin to pick up the pieces after this monstrous storm. To learn how you can get involved visit https://www.ob.org/obdiaster or text “OBDR” to 71777.
Samaritan’s Purse has also rushed to help people in need in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida. Staff members and three Disaster Relief Units are on the ground in hurricane-battered areas of Louisiana. Samaritan’s Purse volunteer teams are partnered with local churches, patching roofs and cleaning out flooded homes in Jesus’s name.
Please pray for the people of Louisiana, as they begin to recover. Pray that Samaritan’s Purse would be able to share the love of God in word and deed in this situation. To learn how you can be a part of the relief work that Samaritan’s Purse is doing, go to SPVolunteer.org.
