Oklahoma Baptists Ready To Help In Iowa

Oklahoma Baptists are on their way to help with flood relief in Iowa.  They left Tuesday night for a town where the water peaked last week, and now people are cleaning up.  The News On 6's Emory Bryan reports with the water receding, Oklahomans are on their way to help.

Until Tuesday morning, Frank Mitchell had never heard of Wapello, Iowa.  Now, he's getting ready to camp out there for the next few weeks.

"They need food.  They need shelter.  And, some way to keep themselves clean of course," said disaster volunteer Frank Mitchell.

As part of Oklahoma Baptists Disaster Relief, First Baptist of Chandler is sending a trailer to Iowa.  The trailer is a portable laundromat.

"We'll just plug in.  We're going to a church parking lot and we'll set up there and hook up to their electric and water," said disaster volunteer Frank Mitchell.

When the trailer arrives in Iowa the 4 washers and 5 dryers can run continuously and with only water and electricity.  They'll be providing one of the basic needs of people in a disaster.

Young is a farmer from Cyril.  His disaster work up until now has been focused on building generators to run the trailers, but now he's volunteered to tow the trailer to Iowa.

"So, as far as me being an experienced person in the field, I'm not," said disaster volunteer Joe Young.

The Baptists aren't sure how long they'll be needed or exactly what they'll find.  They just know they are needed.

"My gift is just service.  Go where people need help, that's a gift God gave me to go in Jesus name where people need help," said disaster volunteer Frank Mitchell.

The laundry trailer is going to a town where the Chandler First Baptist also has a set of volunteers and trailer full of showers that will likely to be called into service.  They're on standby now.