More than 70 volunteers from an assortment of organizations were ready Wednesday afternoon at Haven Hollow Park in Portage Township.
They had tarps, bags of bottled water, flashlights, charcoal, diapers, hygiene supplies, toys, children’s books, hot meals, sandwiches and snacks waiting for distribution to folks left without power for several days after a derecho hit Northwest Indiana Aug. 11.
The storm brought straight-line winds clocked at 99 mph that tore out trees, toppled utility poles and lines, and damaged homes, as well as torrential rain. NIPSCO expects power to be fully restored in Portage and Gary by the end of the day Aug. 25, according to the utility’s website.
Around 4:10 p.m. Wednesday, as a growing line of cars developed at Haven Hollow, the distribution was about to get underway.
“All right, who’s ready?” Portage Township Trustee Brendan Clancy told the waiting volunteers. “Let’s do this!”
Over the span of more than two hours, volunteers loaded cars — and at least one wagon and a golf cart — with much-needed supplies. With the help of community partners, the distribution came together in a couple of days, Clancy said, and volunteers assisted around 230 families
Clancy said he didn’t have power, and neither did many of the volunteers who pitched in. Some grateful recipients living in Portage and the surrounding township said their power had recently come back on but had little food left.
“As the power begins to come back on, people have different needs,” Clancy said.
Residents have needed help getting out of their driveways because of downed trees, and ways to keep medicine refrigerated and breathing machines working.
“We’ve dealt with everything possible in the past week,” he said.
More Top Picks Mr Coffee 4 Shot Steam Espresso
Within 24 hours after the storm, the Bonner Senior Center in Portage became an emergency shelter, Clancy said, adding the Porter County Emergency Management Agency and other organizations provided cots and bedding, toys, movies and a projector, and even a popcorn maker.
The center served more than 570 meals, he said, and provided 152 overnight stays to those in need.
He found the same support for Wednesday’s event. “Everybody I called is like, we’ll be there,” he said. Ohio County, in southeastern Indiana, sent water, sports drinks and diapers, he added.
The community, Clancy said, has been “constantly responding” to residents’ needs in the storm’s aftermath.
“It’s not about Portage Township government. It’s about the community and everybody coming together,” he said. “You do the best you can with what you’ve got.”
Patti Burton, a retiree who lives on the west side of Portage by Rees Funeral Home, came through the line first for tarps, charcoal, diapers for her great-grandchildren and other necessities, and also was pleased to get the kids’ book “Oh, David!” by David Shannon.
Her house, she said, was flooded with six inches of water. Though no trees came through her house, a large branch fell in front and would have totaled her car if she had been home. After five days, Burton said she got a generator.
“Everybody’s being nice. I have to admit that,” she said, adding she spent $90 on gas for the generator and has been spending $40 a day since then, while also having to go out to eat.
Kirt Raisor, a member of American Legion Post 502 in South Haven, which helped with Wednesday’s distribution, grabbed a couple of blue tarps and put them in his pickup truck for delivery to a woman whose house was struck by a tree and who couldn’t get out.
“What people want, I deliver to them. Some people just can’t make it,” said Raisor, an inspector at Cleveland-Cliffs in Burns Harbor who lives in Valparaiso and said his power was restored Sunday night.
Ruben Mendez, sergeant at arms for the American Legion post, said the power at his Portage home came on Tuesday night, but he’s having electrical issues so he’s back on a generator. He was helping oversee the Legion’s hot meal distribution, which included hot dogs, pulled pork and sloppy joes.
Mendez, a union carpenter by trade, said he didn’t have any damage at his home and cut down the only tree on his property a few years ago. He saw food as the community’s greatest need right now.
“If you don’t have power, you don’t have food,” he said. “Hopefully everybody can get some normalcy soon.”
More Top Picks Best Push Lawn Sweepers
Kayla Chavez and her daughters Avacyn, 5, and Lillia, 4, walked over to Haven Hollow Park pulling a wagon. Chavez said they live nearby and had their power restored Tuesday.
“This was amazing because we were out of food,” said Chavez, a therapist who works with children with autism in Highland and has been out of work for more than a week because of the storm.
Chavez said the family also attended an event at lunchtime, where her children got snacks and toys and the chance to play and socialize with other kids. Other than losing power and some broken tree limbs, she said, “we were very fortunate.”