Et cetera : NCCC Cedar 4 helps with Colorado flood relief efforts

Cedar 4's Patrick and Alan haul boards out of an flood-affected home in Colorado.

Cedar 4 poses in front of the NECHAMA van with site supervisors, Irv and Gene.

By Samantha Janda, Cedar 4

The AmeriCorps NCCC team of, Cedar 4, was called upon to assist with disaster relief efforts for flooding in Colorado, and departed from Vinton, Iowa on September 23. They are serving with the Jewish disaster relief organization NECHAMA near the Boulder area of Colorado.

Cedar 4 has been very busy ever since their arrival. They started work in the town of Evans, Colo., where the flood affected home after home. The team quickly became aware of just how devastating a disaster can be, when they began to muck and gut several homes. The flood waters reached about three feet above ground level in the homes, causing massive amounts of damage. Everything had to be removed from the homes, and it is a devastating process, especially for the home owners.

Since then, Cedar 4 has been serving in Lyons, Colo. Lyons was one of the towns hit the worst, with whole roads washed away and homes in shambles. With three weeks spent in Lyons, the NCCC team has helped muck and gut many homes alongside numerous volunteers. The process is slow, but cleaning out one house at a time can always help to make a difference.

Exposure to a disaster like this is an eye-opening experience for this NCCC team. Cedar 4 has one week left in Colorado and plans on doing the best they can with helping out these unsuspecting victims of natural disaster.

NECHAMA is a volunteer organization that provides natural disaster preparedness, response, and recovery services nationwide. They have been around for over ten years and accept all whpo want to be of assistance in natural disasters.