An editorial from the Parkersburg News and Sentinel
PARKERSBURG, W.Va. — If you found yourself turning on the heat (finally) in recent days, you are not alone. Though it took a while, the weather is starting to behave as it should this time of year. That may be welcome news for some, but not for the folks in areas hit by flooding this summer. Many of them do not have heat in their homes, and a few of them are still living in shack/tent hybrids that not only have no heat, but make for very chilly evenings indeed.
Thanks in no small part to volunteer efforts that continued long after the spotlight faded in those counties, the recovery continues — great strides have been made. But as the season changes, so does the need. Bitter cold, snow, ice and wind are just around the corner.
Federal Emergency Management Agency officials have announced they are shifting their funding effort to “long-term recovery” and schools. The need for heat in homes is immediate.
Space heaters and electric blankets can help, right now. So can insulating materials, furnaces and stoves, fuel and HVAC experts.
Do not forget about these people, ladies and gentlemen. They still need our help. It could be a cold and bleak Thanksgiving and Christmas for some of them — tough and proud as they may be. At wvflood.com, there are links for donating, volunteering and finding out more about the organizations still trying to lend a hand. Of course there are still the Red Cross and Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster as well.
Find a way to send a little more help, if you can. A little might go a long way; and those folks still have a long way to go.