North Texas charity prepares hurricane relief supplies as Isaias approaches Gulf Coast
A North Texas charity is preparing to send emergency relief supplies if and when Hurricane Isaias makes landfall.
Employees with World Vision are ready to dispatch trucks to the Florida-Mississippi region, where the storm is expected to hit.
A forklift is moving 26 pallets of packed boxes that could be transported to the Gulf Coast as early as tonight. The supplies include cleaning kits, a portable generator, a gas can, backpacks, diapers, toilet paper, bottled water, and toys for children who may be without their own for a while.
The nonprofit considers these items essential for hurricane victims, drawing on its extensive experience in disaster relief.
Roberta Taylor, site manager for World Vision's Dallas operation, oversees a 56,000-square-foot facility in Grand Prairie. The nonprofit, which has operated for 75 years, primarily helps families living in poverty. However, World Vision also responded to 13 emergencies in the U.S. last year and 104 worldwide.
"It's a sad situation for those involved in a disaster, but I'm grateful that we are here to be able to help to bring that light, you know, to fulfill just the smallest of needs," Taylor said.
Taylor said the Grand Prairie warehouse serves as a regional staging hub, positioned to respond to humanitarian crises within 72 hours.
With Hurricane Isaias churning toward the coastline, Taylor and other employees have plenty of work ahead over the next 24 hours.
"Long hours, you get a little hectic because there's people making donations specifically for that particular disaster, so you know our doors open sometimes earlier in the morning, sometimes later at night, sometimes the trucks have to roll at 3 in the morning," Taylor said.
The first truck will not leave the facility until its driver knows where the supplies are needed.
World Vision is coordinating with Gulf Coast churches and other relief organizations to determine where the supplies should be delivered.
CBS News Texas will provide updates as more information becomes available.
