How 21Country is supporting Hurricane Helene relief efforts

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WPTA) – Last Friday night, Hurricane Helene made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane in Florida’s Big Bend region. Over the past week, the southeast corner of the U.S. has felt the devastating impact of the hurricane and its aftermath.

In 21Country, community members and several organizations have been supporting Hurricane Helene relief efforts.

Last Thursday and Friday, crews with Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) and Northeastern REMC headed south to Georgia to position themselves to assist in power restoration efforts.

As time has passed, some I&M crew members have moved to areas surrounding Georgia like Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky that have also been affected by the storm.

On Monday morning, volunteers with the American Red Cross of Fort Wayne departed for Tennessee to assist with relief efforts.

The Indiana National Guard also joined the relief efforts on Monday, heading to North Carolina to assist with search and rescue. They were joined by Indiana Task Force One, which originally deployed to Florida but has relocated to North Carolina.

Back in 21County, community members and several organizations have been supporting Hurricane Helene relief efforts through donation collections.

On Wednesday, Maxwell and Tayona Miller and their four children traveled to their hometown of Fort Wayne after being stranded in their new Barnardsville, North Carolina home for three days. They traveled to Fort Wayne not only for safety, but to collect resources to take back to the Barnardsville community.

On Friday, 21Alive was able to speak with the Miller family after they made their way to the Summit City. They say they are shifting from “survivor mode” to “recovery mode” and are focused on helping their neighbors.

One way the Millers are doing this is through a donation drive at the Menards on Illinois Road on Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon. There, they plan to fill a trailer with supplies that will head to Barnardsville this weekend. If you are unable to make Saturday’s donation drive, the Millers are also taking monetary donations via GoFundMe.

In Huntington, an aviation company aided in relief efforts by using its planes to fly community donations gathered last weekend, Monday, and Tuesday to affected areas.

Fort Wayne’s Buchanan Hauling and Rigging/Buchanan Logistics and Millers All Day are partnering October 3-9 to hold a community-wide donation drive to provide relief to communities in North Carolina. Donations can be dropped at Buchanan Logistics on 5130 Executive Boulevard between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Also in Fort Wayne, Avalon Church and the city’s Southwest Fire stations are collecting bottled water to supply nine North Carolina firehouses with clean water. Those donations can be made from 10 a.m. Sunday through 3 p.m. Tuesday at Avalon Church’s 1212 Lower Huntington Road location. Those interested in serving in other ways can also visit avalonmc.com/DisasterRelief.

Area fire departments and EMS of NE Indiana also gathered at Allen County’s Southwest Fire District Friday to load a semi with equipment. The semi is now headed to North Carolina to provide first responders who lost their gear and/or stations with supplies.

CRST, is collecting donations at its 7310 Innovation Blvd location in Fort Wayne. They will be collecting donation during business hours on-site through Monday Then, one of their trucks will drive to western North Carolina with the supplies.

In Kendallville, Quick Tanks, Inc. is collecting donations on Tuesday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 545 Krueger Street. They are working in partnership with Cornerstone Summit Church in Boone, North Carolina.

With only one week passed since Hurricane Helene’s landfall, relief efforts continue throughout the country. If you know of community members or organizations supporting the cause, reach out to 21Alive by submitting a news tip or sending an email to [email protected].

RELATED: SCAM ALERT: Make sure your Hurricane Helene donations are going to the right place

21Alive’s parent company Gray Media has teamed up with the Salvation Army for Hurricane Helene relief, providing emergency aid, food, drinks, emotional and spiritual care, and long-term recovery services to survivors and rescue workers. You can donate here, with 100% of your donation going directly to the disaster relief operation. You can also make a donation to support the American Red Cross here.