Thanks Ms. wonka,
I said it grimly in a previous post that extra boats were probably needed Sunday-Monday, but at this point, everyone who has drowned has already done so - that includes animals too.
At this point, we are waiting for water to recede to begin cleanup. It already is in some areas.
There are still thousands without power on the West side of Nashville (Belle Meade, Bellevue, Pasquo) and will be for along time, so those people are in great need of non-perishable food items.
The whole area of Nashville is on the brink of losing our water supply. We are tapping into our reserves as I speak, so while we have water now. Next week, we probably will not. And even if our second plant begins working again, it will take a few days until we are back up to normal and they can supply enough for everyone.
So water water water and cleaning supplies (gloves for safety, bleach, mops/towels, soap, anything to clean up mold really...) and dry cardboard boxes/storage bins for salvaged items are THE biggest ways to help right now.
If you can't physically deliver or ship. A good idea would be sending gift cards to Walmart or Target or Costco so people can go buy those types of supplies. (Just an idea?!? and it would save on shipping costs). I'm sure churches might start mobilizing in the Shoals area but I haven't heard anything yet.
I-65 is open but I just imagine it will be pretty secure for a while, so I wouldn't recommend anyone just jump up and drive up here. Definitely call around and get clearances from Red Cross/HON if you are set on getting up here to physically help or deliver.
We definitely don't need boats anymore. We're way past that point.
They are still finding dead people in the receding water, so we just need a lot of prayers and a lot of help spreading the word that this wasn't just a little flash flooding...
www.hon.org will being mobilizing volunteers as soon as they know exactly what needs to be done. The damage is tremendous so I'm sure they are still assessing everything.
Just spreading the word is a major help and will go a long way!!
Here is an awesome site about what you can do from afar.
http://nashvillest.com/2010/05...oded-how-can-i-help/Link for church groups:
http://www.crosspoint.tv/flood...ention-church-groupsThanks everyone!