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Home Depot volunteers prep hurricane kits
FOX 5 Storm Team isn't tracking any tropical storms or hurricanes as this point in the year, but that is not stopping North Georgia volunteers at Home Depot from getting supplies ready for the season ahead.
MCDONOUGH, Ga. - At just two weeks away from the start the Atlantic hurricane season, preparations are already underway to the assist future victims who may be impacted by the next storm.
Much of that support is coming from North Georgia.
The men and women helping out are Atlanta-area Home Depot employees, but they aren’t on the clock. They’re volunteering.
"They are going non-stop without a beat, moving and shaking," said senior manager Joe Wimberley.
Joe Wimberley is in charge of this one-day Home Depot Foundation operation in McDonough.
"In the kits, we have a variety of things," Wimberley said. "Gloves, paper towels – We also have cleaning agents."
He said these are some of the first items storm victims look for after disaster strikes.
"When families are impacted by these disasters, [the] last thing they need to do is focus on all the things they need all at once," he said.
While many of these kits are on-go for people in the path of a land-falling hurricane, Chris Tolle told FOX 5 he has seen the impact of the foundation’s relief close to home.
"There was a whole house that was taken off its foundation and literally laid out on the ground like it was a puzzle," Tolle said.
He spent two days on the ground in Griffin helping his neighbors rebuild after tornadoes swept through the area in January.
"So, it’s really shocking at first to see all the stuff they go through and what they are having to deal with, but it really makes you feel good after you start helping people clean up their stuff and get back to a normal life," he said.
Home Depot volunteers make hurricane kits in McDonough, Ga. ahead of the season. (FOX 5 Atlanta)
The goal of this army of less than 200 is to prepare 5,500 kits ahead of time, so they are ready to help the next round of victims trying to rebuild what nature attempts to destroy.
"And their number one priority is making sure they get them completed, so we can get them out and into our distribution centers," Wimberley said. "The next tornado could happen tomorrow, and we could be ready for that."
The kits are expected to be transported to distribution in McDonough, Savannah and Baytown, Texas.