Rod Cook spent seven years in the Peace Corps in Guatemala. The lack of electricity and poor living conditions in Florida after the hurricane reminded him of those years.
County continues to provide relief
Licking Red Cross director returns from Florida hurricane relief efforts
By L.B. WHYDE
Advocate Correspondent
To help
To donate to the relief effort, call the Licking County chapter of the American Red Cross at 349-9442.
GRANVILLE -- More than three weeks have gone by, and the relief effort in Florida still goes on to help those affected by this year's four hurricanes.
This is the largest relief operation in the history of the American Red Cross, and more than 30,000 volunteers came out to help. That included the executive director of the Red Cross of Licking County, Rod Cook.
Cook recently returned home to Granville from his 10-day stay in Pensacola, Fla., where he drove an emergency response vehicle delivering and serving food, ice and water in the Gulf Breeze area. He averaged 2,000 meals a day, delivering them in the neighborhoods that were still without electricity.
"The closer to the shore you got, the more destruction," Cook said. "Mobile homes to million-dollar mansions were destroyed. It was amazing seeing the destruction. At first I was shocked, then I felt bad for the families affected."
Cook spoke with a fireman who was on duty when the hurricane hit, and he witnessed 30- to 40-foot waves.
"I was amazed at the resiliency of the local people," Cook said. "They still maintained a good sense of humor, and they were very determined to rebuild. There were many families that their whole lives were turned upside down. For many people, not only did they lose their home, they lost their jobs, too."
The recovery will take months and months to get the residents back up on their feet. Cook predicts that the hurricanes will affect the area's economy for years.
One particularly hard hit community, Pensacola Beach, was closed until a week after Hurricane Ivan hit. The residents were allowed in for one day to collect their belongings, and Cook delivered food to them.
"It was like driving through the Midwest after a major blizzard had hit," Cook said. "There was eight to 10 feet of pure white sand piled everywhere. Every house had sand in it. It looked just like snow, except it was 90 degrees out."
Cook has never witnessed such destruction as he saw in his 10 days there, but the living conditions were similar to a Third World country. Cook should know, since he spent seven years in the Peace Corps in Guatemala. The lack of electricity and poor living conditions in Florida reminded him of those years.
His mastery of the Spanish language came in handy as there were many migrant workers affected by the hurricanes. There were also many Spanish-speaking volunteers from Texas.
While it is not often that executive directors of local Red Cross offices volunteer in relief efforts, Cook looked at this as an opportunity to gain experience. He wanted to be prepared to help our local chapter, should anything happen here. He also went because this is the largest Red Cross disaster relief operation ever and organizers were calling for more volunteers.
"If anything positive can come out of this, it is that we (American Red Cross) had a lot of new volunteers that accepted an assignment that would not have if it wasn't for the scope of this disaster," Cook said. "I have a much more comfortable feeling that I would be able to handle a large-scale emergency in Licking County. Personally, I definitely have a deep sense of satisfaction knowing that I helped a lot of people. It makes me feel good."
While in Pensacola, Cook lived in an elementary school, which had electricity and showers. Even though he slept on a cot, compared to some sites, his accommodations were considered luxurious.
"I am thankful that I live up here," Cook said. "After seeing how widespread the destruction was, it definitely made me appreciate the Ohio weather."
