When Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers hear that they’re needed, individuals from across the state put their lives on hold and descend on an area. And these strangers form teams, work long days and pour themselves out into disaster-ridden areas. “It’s amazing how God works — how He puts teams together of

Ferrell Hataway approached the car that pulled up by the tents where industrial cooking equipment and supplies were housed. A man was behind the wheel, and an 8-year-old girl was in the passenger seat. As Hataway was talking to him, he learned that this family’s trailer had been destroyed by

Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief teams will be part of a massive cleanup effort in Louisiana in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, which struck the state Aug. 29 as a Category 4 storm. Ida made two landfalls, the first near Port Fourchon and the second in Lafourche Parish, with maximum sustained

Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief teams are on alert for likely deployment in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, which made landfall Aug. 29 in Louisiana as a Category 4 storm. Ida made landfall near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, around noon Sunday as a high-end Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of

At least five people were killed and hundreds of homes — and at least two churches — were destroyed or damaged when tornadoes struck several Alabama communities on March 25. The deaths occurred in Calhoun County in east Alabama, where Ohatchee, Wellington and nearby communities were struck. Calhoun Baptist Association

As a team of Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers worked in Center Point to clear a yard following the Jan. 25 tornado that struck the area, a 79-year-old homeowner, Jeff Schatz, spoke to his son on the phone. “There are a bunch of bumblebees in my yard,” he said, describing

Mark Wakefield says Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers have been working steadily for a long time as hurricane after hurricane has pounded the Southeast, starting with Hurricane Laura relief in Louisiana in August. And now they’re scattered across the state helping people clean up after Hurricane Zeta rolled through. Zeta

Hurricane Zeta left a wide swath of damage across Alabama. While it is widespread, the most severe seems to be west of I-65. Teams are working in several counties. We have set up operations in Clarke and Mobile Associations. Many people are taking care of their own and their neighbors’

When Robert and Elsie Whittle heard Hurricane Laura was headed right for them, they couldn’t believe it. A tree had already fallen on the back of their home earlier this summer when high winds and tornadoes had torn through their hometown of Leesville, Louisiana. They’d lost their kitchen, and since

Romar Beach Baptist Church in Orange Beach and Camp Baldwin in Elberta each sustained significant damage as Hurricane Sally made landfall at Gulf Shores in the predawn hours of Sept. 16. Romar Beach Baptist Church suffered extensive damage, inside and out, according to pastor Chris Fowler in a Sept. 17

Just two days after Hurricane Sally made landfall, Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief workers were at First Baptist Church, Gulf Shores, getting ready to dig in. Mark Wakefield, the state’s lead strategist for Disaster Relief, was onsite and surveying the damage to the church, which included flooding and a blown out

Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers are headed to Leesville, Louisiana, to assist in cleanup efforts following Hurricane Laura. Two ABDR chainsaw teams will work alongside South Carolina Disaster Relief to help in the Leesville area, according to Mark Wakefield, disaster relief strategist for the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions.