Hurricanes Open Channel for Goodness and Kindness.

It gives hope to recall the Previous Rebbe's prophecy about disasters through water in the days of Moshiach. (http://redemptionwatch.blogspot.com/2012/10/prophecy-of-raging-waters-in-days-of.html) The purpose of these disasters was to bring nations to a recognition and awe of G-d. But something else emerges in the recent stories of Hurricane Harvey in Houston, Texas, and Hurricane Irma in Florida. Extraordinary acts of kindness broke through the normal reserves of people, opening up a channel to give unstintingly to others. One young man who helped serve meals for hundreds said, “You can’t imagine what an amazing feeling it is to help someone in their time of need.”

Even animals were well-treated in the storm. In Houston, one man found a 10 foot alligator in his living room. He and helpers tried to lasso it. Then specialists arrived. One jumped on his back, taped his jaws shut, and the men carried it out to be transported to a wildlife sanctuary.

Here are snippets from news stories:

Operation BBQ Relief pulls into Houston to comfort, nourish with smoked meat (Greg Morago, Houston Chronicle, Aug. 30, 2017)

Some OperationBBQRelief Volunteers with reporter. They served
 over 300,000 meals to first responders, military, and Houston residents.

Operation BBQ Relief (is) a non-profit organization comprised of competition barbecue enthusiasts who respond to natural disasters by hauling in their smokers and churning out hot barbecue meals. Members of the organization - coming from Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Virginia, Florida, Louisiana and other regions of Texas - began making their way to Houston Sunday and Monday,…

On Wednesday morning they began turning a large parking lot into a barbecue village with about 30 volunteers, which by the end of the week organizers expected would grow to 100. Operation BBQ Relief co-founder Stan Hays of Kansas City, Mo., said his crew will be in Houston for two, possibly three weeks and is prepared to serve more than half a million meals to police, first responders, emergency volunteers and evacuees.

When 911 Is Overwhelmed, Americans Keep Each Other Afloat

A rescue underway in a flooded area of Houston after Harvey

 CBS NEWS

I told the man in the boat that we were paramedics trying to reach a patient. ‘Get in,’ he said.  Mark Yost, Wall St. Journal, Aug. 30, 2017

During a typical day, my suburb’s 911 communications center has maybe 14 calls outstanding at any one time. On this day there were more than 700. To help out, the National Guard had deployed its rescue boats, but they were kept busy shuttling into neighborhoods and evacuating as many stranded families as they could.

So we hitched a ride with a civilian, one of the army of volunteers who showed up to help. He drove us into knee-deep water in his Super Duty pickup to a rendezvous with a 12-foot flat-bottomed boat that was bringing a family of six to dry ground. The boat belonged to a guy in his 40s and his dad. I asked if they would take us into the apartment complex. That’s when the dad inquired whether I was carrying a gun.

“Do I need one?” I asked.

“You might,” he said. “Last time we went in there, we had to fight off some guys who tried to take our boat.”

I told him we were trying to reach a 911 call.

“Get in,” he said.

Los Angeles Fire Department gets some Texas hospitality

Los Angeles Swift Water Rescue Team was one of several dispatched from Southern California to help Harvey victims.

Phoenix O'Connor, NewsWest9, Midland, TX, Sept. 6, 2017

"At about 10 p.m., the Los Angeles County Swift Water Team showed up in Midland, they were headed back home," said Captain Bryce Pruitt with the Midland Fire Department.

Well, we should say almost home. 

"We were planning on spending the night in El Paso, Texas, and when we got the call we were being re-deployed into Hurricane Irma," said Assistant Chief Steve Hissong with the Los Angeles Fire Department. 

The Los Angeles crew has spent more than 12 days helping people be rescued from the flooded waters in Houston. Without a doubt, the Midland Central station showed a little Texas hospitality. 

 "We put their equipment up for the night, and gave them rides back to the Doubletree where they slept in a good bed. Then we invited them back to central this (Wednesday) morning to feed them before they get back on the road to Alabama," said Hissong. 

The 24 Los Angeles crew members, now with their bellies full, are ready to take on their next challenge.

Seattle Fire Department Facebook Page, Sept. 9, 2017

Twenty five Seattle Firefighters who are members of Washington Task Force 1 are headed to Florida as part of a Type 1 Task Force deployment to help those impacted by Hurricane Irma. This task force consists of 80 personnel from around the Puget Sound region. Mark Larsen is leading the Task Force. We also have an additional firefighter who is helping with assigning incoming resources to the most impacted areas.

Seattle has an agreement with the Miami Fire Department where their firefighters can use Seattle’s Fire Alarm Center as an out-of-area contact to communicate with their families should local telephone lines stop working.

Florida is in our thoughts during these devastating times.