Salvation Army Teams in Southern USA Support Oil Clean-up Operation

SALVATION Army teams in southern USA are providing assistance to workers engaged in the clean-up operation after an explosion on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico caused a giant oil slick. As the oil spill intensified and moved toward land, state and local government entities and British Petroleum (BP) – the owner of the rig – contacted The Salvation Army for assistance providing refreshments to the thousands of volunteers responding to clean-up efforts in Mississippi and Louisiana.

Two mobile feeding units from New Orleans were deployed to Venice, Louisiana, to provide water and cold drinks to volunteers and authorities engaged in the clean-up. More than 1,000 volunteers are expected to support the response. The Salvation Army’s Mississippi Gulf Coast Area Command deployed a mobile feeding unit to Ocean Springs to provide drinks for 500-1,000 responders.

The Salvation Army was initially asked not to provide feeding services but to encourage volunteers to support restaurants and businesses in support of the local economy.

'Thousands of lives depend every day on the ecosystem of the Gulf Coast,' said Major Gene Hogg, General Secretary of The Salvation Army’s Alabama-Louisiana-Mississippi Division. 'The Salvation Army is supporting the oil spill clean-up to protect the environment and to provide encouragement to families and individuals coping with the effects of this disaster.'

The Salvation Army is liaising with state and local governments and BP to find additional avenues to support the clean-up efforts.

'Of concern is the long-term economic impact and the strain that potential lost jobs in the fishing, shrimping and tourism industries could mean to social service agencies that support the communities of the Gulf Coast,' added Major Hogg.