Nestled in the forest between a state park and a national park, Hot Springs Village, Arkansas is normally a quiet retirement community, but on Thursday, March 14, an EF-2 tornado touched down with winds up to 115 mph. The winds uprooted more than 1000 trees, snapped more than 300 utility poles and brought baseball-sized hail and flash floods. Responders are still trying to assess the total damage to homes and vehicles by winds and flood water in a community where the average age is 67.
The Office of Emergency Management for Saline and Garland counties have invited Union’s International Rescue and Relief Program to join in recovery efforts. A team of 15-20 Union College students and employees will travel to Arkansas to work from March 18-24. Gideon Rescue Company, a relief organization with strong connections to the IRR Program, is already on the ground assisting with damage assessment. They will be coordinating with Union’s students for support in covering windows and roofs and removing debris and fallen trees. The Hot Springs Adventist School and Hot Springs Seventh-day Adventist Church, located just outside of the affected area, have offered to host the students and serve as the base of operations.
Union’s Disaster Response Team operates through the generosity of the college’s supporters. Though the students and employees give their time and energy freely, the cost of food, fuel, specialized equipment, tarps and other supplies for a trip like this is estimated at between $10,000 to $15,000. Your support allows our students to serve as the hands and feet of Jesus to the people affected in this disaster and to others in the future. Please consider supporting the Disaster Response Team using the form below.