CLEARFIELD – Two weeks after a stationary storm dumped over five inches of rain on Clearfield Borough, there’s still a lot of work to be done.
At Thursday’s Clearfield Borough Council meeting, Borough Operations Manager Leslie Stott said the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief Team will be leaving Clearfield on Sunday.
However, recovery efforts will continue. Stott said that the United Methodist Committee on Relief will be coming to the area to continue assisting residents who were affected by the flooding.
Stott said the teams from UMCOR will also be spraying homes to prevent mold growth. She also said the UMCOR teams will be staying in the area for a longer period of time and will assist with some of the bigger repair and recovery projects.
According to its Web site, UMCOR’s work reaches people in more than 80 countries, as well as in the United States. They provide humanitarian relief when war, conflict, or natural disasters disrupt life to such an extent that communities are unable to recover on their own.
UMCOR believes that successful solutions to emergency or chronic conditions begin with the affected population. UMCOR provides survivors not only temporary relief, but also long-term education, training, and support.
Additionally, UMCOR will conduct training for Clearfield area residents in how to assist the flood victims. Stott said the first training will be held at 2:30 p.m. on June 22 at West Side United Methodist Church.
Stott said she has had several meetings with representatives from Red Cross and the Salvation Army in efforts to search for possible funding. She said she will be meeting with representatives from the Salvation Army from Pittsburgh.
“There were five or six homes that were lost in the Clearfield Street/Williams Street/Weaver Street area. Red Cross has been assisting with money for furnaces, but I foresee this becoming an issue come fall,” Stott said.
She said many of the residents didn’t lose their furnaces, but they will still need to be cleaned and serviced before the cold weather comes.
“We’re still in the recovery phase and we will be for a long time,” Stott said.
