Friday, Aug. 29, 2008

S.C. volunteers prep for Gustav relief effort

The hurricane relief traffic from S.C. to the Gulf Coast started Thursday as the Red Cross loaded the first of seven trucks of supplies bound for Louisiana.

Hurricane Gustav is days away from landfall, but relief officials aren’t waiting for the storm to pick a target. They’re going to have supplies staged at inland sites, ready for dispersal anywhere along the coast. The trucks from the Midlands are bound for Baton Rouge.

The Central South Carolina chapter of the American Red Cross called volunteers Thursday to help load trucks with 32,750 comfort kits stored at a warehouse in Blythewood, said spokeswoman Mary Nash.

Disaster manager Arnie Granke and volunteers Jim Proxee and Larry Nettles used forklifts to load stacks of kits, which include toiletries such as soap, shampoo, wash cloths, combs, deodorant, toothpaste and toothbrushes. The youth kits feature a stuffed toy and coloring sheets.

Blankets and coolers also were loaded into the trucks.