Tornado damage in Ohatchee Thursday afternoon. Photo by Bill Wilson
Emergency management officials on Tuesday said that debris-clearing is now the top task in the areas of Ohatchee and Wellington that were struck by a tornado Thursday. Five people were killed in the storm.
Volunteers are the main workforce for cleanup, officials said.
People who want to volunteer can show up at Oak Bowery Baptist Church between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. on most days, although Calhoun County Emergency Management Agency spokeswoman Tiffany DeBoer said the agency doesn’t plan to send volunteers out Wednesday because of another round of severe weather in the forecast.
“We do expect a lot of volunteers for the rest of the week and especially the weekend,” DeBoer said.
Local officials are no longer taking donations of physical goods to help storm victims. DeBoer said the response to the call for donations was good.
“They’re sufficiently supplied,” she said.
People can still give monetary donations at: uweca.org/tornadorelief.