Episcopal Relief and Development continues working closely with dioceses directly impacted by Hurricane Katrina as well as assisting communities where displaced people have relocated. So far, ERD has partnered with the Dioceses of Mississippi, Louisiana, and the Central Gulf Coast to provide relief to affected communities. ERD is supporting evacuees and displaced families in the Dioceses of West Texas, Western Louisiana, and Alabama. ERD is providing health kits to people in Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Texas through a partnership with Church World Service.

Mississippi
ERD is assisting the Diocese of Mississippi in reaching out to people in devastated communities along the southern coast of the state. Four staging areas in the diocese provide sites where emergency aid, such as food and medical supplies, is being received and distributed to people affected by the disaster. St. Thomas Church in Diamondhead, north of Bay St. Louis, is serving as the third staging area set up by the diocese and is expected to serve thousands of people. Two staging areas are already operating in Ocean Springs and Long Beach.

Alabama
With support from ERD and the Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast, emergency assistance is being delivered to the southern Mobile County communities of Bayou La Batre and Coden where many residents lost everything. A storm surge caused by Hurricane Katrina wiped out homes and businesses in these towns along the Alabama coast. Through ERD’s partnership with the diocese, evacuees from Mississippi and Louisiana are receiving critical aid such as food and temporary shelter. Approximately 150 displaced people are housed at Beckwith Camp & Conference Center in Fairhope.     

In the Diocese of Alabama, ERD is helping the diocese respond to the needs of people evacuated from Mississippi and Louisiana. The assistance will help parishes and individuals that are temporarily sheltering and housing displaced people.

Louisiana
ERD’s partnership with the Diocese of Louisiana is helping Episcopalians respond to and organize the relief efforts of local parishes providing supplies and services to displaced people. Many evacuees are being housed at Episcopal churches throughout the diocese. While in Louisiana last week, Robert W. Radtke, ERD President visited one of the shelters set up at St. Luke’s Church in Baton Rouge, which is located next to a hospital. “St. Luke’s is looking after mothers, children, and babies who were evacuated from maternity wards in New Orleans. The church provides a place for them to recover and to help them get back on their feet,” said Radtke.

With support from ERD, a new Disaster Response Coordinator has started in the new role coordinating the Diocese of Louisiana’s activities following Hurricane Katrina. In the coming weeks, the coordinator will work out of the diocesan office and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) headquarters in Baton Rouge. 

In the Diocese of Western Louisiana, ERD is supporting evacuees by providing emergency assistance such as food, clothing, and health care services. Parishes and conference centers are being used to house, feed, and care for hundreds of displaced people from New Orleans.

Texas
ERD has partnered with the Diocese of West Texas to help serve 450 children displaced from the New Orleans area who began attending schools in San Antonio on Tuesday, September 6. The children received school uniforms, supplies, personal hygiene products, and underwear. “ERD’s assistance enabled the children, who arrived in San Antonio with nothing, to enter classes with all the supplies and clothing they need,” said Betty Chumney, Bishop’s Deputy for World Mission for the Diocese of West Texas. “All children entering school are also being given the appropriate inoculations free of charge,” said Chumney.

ERD is in communication with the Diocese of Texas to provide emergency assistance to people relocated to Houston and other local communities.

ERD is also in conversation with the Dioceses of Missouri, Western Kansas, Lexington, East Tennessee, and West Tennessee to provide relief to people in their communities who were displaced by the hurricane.

Abagail Nelson, ERD’s Vice President for Program, is currently in the Gulf Coast region working with dioceses to coordinate relief efforts and develop long-term recovery programs.

For more details about the response to Hurricane Katrina, please check the Hurricane Katrina Crisis Center on our Web site at http://www.er-d.org/. The center is regularly updated with new information, personal accounts, and other resources.

To make a contribution to help people affected by Hurricane Katrina, please donate to the Hurricane Katrina Response Fund by credit card at http://www.er-d.org/ or by calling 1-800-334-7626, ext. 5129. Gifts can be mailed to: Episcopal Relief and Development, c/o Hurricane Katrina Response Fund, PO Box 12043, Newark, NJ 07101. Please note: All donations given to the US Hurricane Fund beginning August 28, 2005 will be transferred to the Hurricane Katrina Response Fund.