McCalla Tornado Cleanup

A little rain and cold was not enough to keep a 12-person CFC team from responding to two requests for debris removal in McCalla/Bessemer following the EF2 tornado that struck the Bent Brook golf course area on Tuesday, March 1.  Actually, it was more than a little rain, but we were prepared for the inclement weather and so we were able to quite expeditiously handle the two work orders presented to us by Oasis of Praise Church of God on Pocahontas Road. We arrived at our host church and volunteer sign-in center before 8 am and were welcomed with hot coffee and donuts provided to us by the church.

Embracing our rain soaked workday the 12 members of our McCalla/Bessemer team consisted of (kneeling, left to right) Alan Weeks, Buddy Williams, (standing, left to right) Henry Averyt, Ken Clements, Jason Cannon, Boyd Martin, Tim Smith, John Calhoun, Bob Nabors, Drew Charles, John Boettner and Bob Thompson.  And in the background, our 13th team member: Asbury UMC's skid steer Abel.

Once the team participants were all assembled we headed out to our first assignment on Dickey Springs Road.  Homeowner Lee Davis had several trees come down around his home, some of which fell across the cars that were parked on his tract of land.  Several cutters began to cut the limbs while the remainder of the team served as pullers and stacked the cut limbs in several piles awaiting their removal by Abel to a HUGE debris pile in a remote section of Mr. Davis' property.  When the weather clears and the debris pile dries out Mr. Davis will be able to host a great marshmallow-roasting party for his neighbors!

Mr. Davis: The team at work:

Before: After:

Abel at work: Job done - all clear:

Our second job was further to the east also on Dickey Springs Road, at the home occupied by Mr. Gene Hocutt.  Mr. Hocutt is a survivor of now two separate tornadoes!  In 2011 he lost his home in Fultondale to the "Tuscaloosa Tornado" that rumbled through his neighborhood to the north of Birmingham as it came through our area, and now his Bessemer home was buried two days ago by the giant tree that was pulled up and toppled from its roots on his neighbor's property, crashed through the fence that separated their properties and ultimately came to rest on the roof of his home.  While we were at Mr. Hocutt's home Marlei Martinez, a reporter for WVTM Channel 13 NBC TV, and her cameraman, stopped and filmed our work and interviewed us for a piece that aired on the channel's 5 PM newscast.  Her report was extremely complimentary of our mission and highlighted the faith-based focus of our coalition disaster response ministry.

Mr. Hocutt: The debris pile at the curb after removing the tree from Mr. Hocutt's roof and yard:

Before: After:

Before: After:

Following job #2 we returned to Oasis of Praise Church of God to dry out and share in the lunch prepared for us by the church members.  Once out of our wet rain suits and warmed by the gas fireplaces they turned on for us in their fellowship hall, we then enjoyed homemade vegetable soup - particularly good and hearty on this cold, damp day - lasagna, cornbread and sweet tea, all of which perked us up and readied us for an afternoon of additional work.  The rain outside had not let up so we were not particularly disappointed at this point to learn that there were actually no other work orders pending for us today.  According to Pastor Allan Kendrick, he did not believe there would be much, if any, further work for us in the Bent Brook area, what with most properties being well insured, but we assured him that if others do come forward in the future, we would be prepared to return to assist further.

We're entering the season of severe storms, so as we prepare to deploy again in the weeks and months ahead we hope many of you reading this will come work with us if you are able.  And even if you can not, may we ask that you pray for our safety as we work in the fields and that you especially pray for the survivors of the storms who we will serve, that they will know that our Lord Jesus Christ will never forsake them, and that He will always love them and lift them up with hope no matter how devastating the storms may be. As always, please remember to stay in touch with us by reading our blog at cuttersforchrist.bolgspot.com from time to time!

In His Service, Bob Bob Thompson Cutters for Christ Disaster Response Ministry Deployment/Team Coordinator