Recovery efforts underway in flood-stricken areas of Georgia, Mississippi | Baptist Press

SUMMERVILLE, Ga. (BP) — Floods affecting the water system of this northwest Georgia city and Baptists’ response mirrors an identical effort happening in Jackson, Miss.

Heavy rainfall this weekend prompted church buildings to regulate Sunday morning schedules in Summerville, Ga. whereas main others to donate bottled water and different objects.

“We didn’t get as a lot rain yesterday (Sept. 4) or final night time, in order that was good,” Barry Peppers, director of missions for Chattooga Baptist Affiliation, instructed Baptist Press Sept. 5. “Mainly, we’re coping with a water scarcity proper now and a few misplaced households.

“Dwain Carter and Georgia Baptist Catastrophe Reduction are right here and assessing the state of affairs and [Georgia Baptist Executive Director] Thomas Hammond has reached out to us alongside so many others,” he stated. “We need to thank them for his or her assist.”

The Nationwide Climate Service introduced Sept. 5 that over ten inches of rain fell in Summerville, which made the Chattooga River rise nearly 17 toes. That spurred the Metropolis of Summerville to situation a boil water advisory Sunday at 10:18 a.m. till additional discover as a result of flooding on the Racoon Creek Filter plant. Chattooga County faculties will probably be closed at present and tomorrow.

Georgia Baptists’ state newspaper, The Christian Index, reported Sept. 4 that a number of church buildings had already dispatched vehicles crammed with bottled water to the world.

“We haven’t heard an official timeline,” stated Peppers on the size of the boil water advisory. “That’s the principle factor we’re coping with proper now, however we’re getting water by the truckloads.”

Whereas floodwaters closed a bit of Summerville’s downtown, harm to Southern Baptist church buildings has been minimal.

First Baptist, the place Peppers is serving as interim pastor – acquired some flooding to its fitness center and fellowship corridor. Steve Peppers, pastor of Halfway Baptist and the DOM’s son, stated that the church constructing suffered some flood harm to its basement.

North Summerville Baptist Church distributed bottled water and garments Sunday night and Monday. Central Avenue Baptist Church in close by Trion gave away water Monday, with every household receiving two circumstances and a scorching meal. Cleanup kits had been additionally accessible.

Barry Peppers added that the Salvation Military is working alongside native efforts as is Second Genesis, a feeding ministry based mostly in Cartersville, Ga., that’s briefly based mostly at Central Avenue Baptist.

A flood watch remained in impact via 8 p.m. Sept. 5 for northern and western Georgia. Extreme runoff might end in flooding of rivers, creeks, streams and different low-lying and flood-prone areas, the Nationwide Climate Service stated. Heavy rainfall remained potential, with scattered thunderstorms potential for the rest of the week.

The Georgia storms got here days after one other flooding occasion affected the water provide in Jackson, Miss.

After a time of evaluation, space church buildings joined Mississippi Baptist Catastrophe Reduction (MBDR), Metro Baptist Affiliation and Rankin Baptist Affiliation in water distribution efforts.

MBDR started distributing water to space residents Sept. 2 upon receiving a tractor-trailer load from Tennessee Baptist Catastrophe Reduction. College students from the Hinds Neighborhood Faculty Baptist Scholar Union assisted in delivering the water to aged residents.

“Her feeble voice instructed me she was previous. (a lot older than I),” MBDR director Hubert Yates shared on Fb of 1 resident expressed her thanks.

“’I simply wished to thanks for the water. I didn’t know the way I used to be going to get any and I used to be nearly out. I used to be so frightened. I so recognize it as a result of I don’t drive and rarely go away my residence,’” she instructed him.

First Baptist Church in Jackson, Miss., moved companies to The Mississippi Commerce Mart Middle “as a result of uncertainties with the FBJ campus water strain,” it introduced on Fb. The church has emphasised water assortment via its “Convey Pleasure to Jackson” emphasis and is enlisting volunteers for supply. The restoration efforts in Mississippi and Georgia happen simply as many Catastrophe Reduction personnel return from working areas affected by overwhelming Kentucky floods. In that occasion, no less than 37 died with widespread destruction via a number of Appalachian cities.