Work Begins in Neon Flood
Work Begins in Neon Flood
by Mike Cloy, elder, Landis OPC, Marion, NC
July 31, 2022:
Elder Mike Cloy, a Presbytery of the Southeast Diaconal Committee Member and Disaster Response Coordinator, traveled to Neon to see firsthand the clean-up progress of the members of the church and the DART (Disaster Advanced Response Team). They were able to muck out the building and demo the drywall, bathrooms, and kitchen. The DART then redeployed back to Atlanta to prepare for the next disaster. We thank the DART and the men who deployed to assist Neon, OPC. Alex Dorr, Elijah, and Josiah Brothers, and Noah Cunningham are members of Covenant OPC Buford, GA, and Ben Greer is a member of Bethlehem Church. Pastor Bennett and Elders Long and Cloy met to go over several planning considerations to establish the next steps of the response.
August 1, 2022:
A tentative disaster response plan has been created by Pastor Bennett and Elder Long with Assistance from Elder Cloy. This plan will be briefed to the Disaster Response Oversight Committee for final approval. A major challenge is the lack of water. The town of Neon's water system is damaged and it might take several months for it to be repaired. The next step is to power wash (from water supplied in tanks) the concrete floor, treat the wood surface with a sanitizing agent, seal up the open spaces and start drying out the area with blowers and dehumidifiers. Mr. Jim Flanagan, a member of Covenant OPC, Newbern, NC, will arrive today to assess the facility's sealing, sanitizing, and drying out and put that plan into motion. Elder Walter Robinson, a member of Providence OPC, Chilhowie, will arrive tomorrow with critical supplies to power wash and seal up the church facility.
For those who are seeking to assist in the response efforts please stayed tuned as requests for specific dates of service with specific types of work will be published soon.
If you are interested in helping with this effort, be sure to register: https://opcdisasterresponse.org/volunteer-registry/. To donate toward this effort, we have established the "Kentucky Flood Fund". Go to give.opc.org or for donations by check, instructions can be found here: https://opcdisasterresponse.org/how-to-donate/
Check back on our site for more updates as they are available.
