As of 8 p.m. Sunday, the Toomer’s for Tuscaloosa Facebook page had ?72,486 ‘likes.’ Chris Tate, a training officer for the Emergency Management Agency of Lee County who is helping to organize Auburn University’s relief efforts for Tuscaloosa in the wake of an EF5 tornado, said this is revolutionary.
“This is the first time I know of where help in a natural disaster is all coordinated through the use of social media,” Lee said. “We are essentially just organizing the work that is all done by social media. We [EMA] knew Toomer’s for Tuscaloosa would need some practical assistance when the Facebook page went viral.”
However, Lee said EMA technically did not have anything to do with generating the massive amount of responders who are swarming to offer help to the affected areas.
The Ham Wilson Livestock Arena has been transformed into an aid station, where supplies are neatly sorted into categories such as toys, first aid or clothing as they are dropped off. The supplies are then loaded into trucks and driven immediately to Tuscaloosa.
Lee said they currently have a surplus of bottled water and do not need anymore.
“We had a conference with all of the state Emergency Management Agencies and determined all affected counties have the ability to obtain bottled water, tarps and MRE’s (meals ready to eat),” he explained.
However, he also listed items tornado victims statewide still desperately in need. Items at the top of the list include: baby items (Pedialyte, food, formula, diapers and wipes), batteries, toys, personal hygiene items, non-perishable food, broken-down boxes, packing tape, canned pet food, animal food bowls, box fans, flashlights and First Aid supplies such as Advil and Benadryl.
Donations will be collected at the Ham Wilson Livestock Arena at Auburn through Wednesday, from 7 a.m. to midnight each day.
Lee emphasizes that those wishing to volunteer in Tuscaloosa or any other affected area should go through an organized relief effort instead of striking out on their own.
“Even if people’s hearts are in the right places, stepping out on one’s own is not conducive to search and rescue or recovery,” Lee said. “We have people out there trying to do this and getting hurt. If you want to volunteer, please coordinate with an organization such as Toomer’s for Tuscaloosa to find the right place for you.”
Football rivalry aside, some Auburn students are doing just that to help those who are in need in Tuscaloosa.
“My boyfriend and I came out on Thursday to donate a bunch of stuff,” said Jordan Hall, an Auburn senior majoring in history. “I know some people at the University of Alabama who were really affected by the storms, and it is important for me to help. When I got an email saying they needed people to help sort the donated supplies before they are sent to Tuscaloosa, I decided to volunteer.”
Hall said she has gained most of her information about the relief efforts through the Facebook page Toomer’s for Tuscaloosa.
“It’s amazing how Facebook is driving this thing,” said Glen Granberry, a member of Auburn United Methodist Church, one of the congregations sponsoring a drop off location for Toomer’s for Tuscaloosa. “I just know there is a lot of need throughout the state, and we want to do anything we can to help,” he said, motioning to his 6-year-old son, who was helping to stack supplies in an eighteen-wheeler truck.
Granberry said Toomer’s for Tuscaloosa also takes cash donations. The drop off location he volunteers at collected $2,000 for Tuscaloosa yesterday alone.
Auburn University student, Jessica Belue, said the school hosted a pre-organized Jumbalaya lunch fundraiser Friday and reallocated the profits from the Toomer’s Corner trees to disaster relief in Tuscaloosa.
“I think people are just coming together to do what they can to help,” Belue said.
Help includes anything from donating supplies to volunteering time to hosting friends affected by Wednesday’s tornado. Some UA students, such as Leslie Jones, a sophomore majoring in education, have found temporary refuge with their Auburn friends and family until the debris has cleared.
“My roommates and I didn’t have power after the tornado, and we thought it was best to get out of the way of the cleanup efforts, so we came to Auburn,” Jones said. She plans to stay with her high school friends until she is able to go back to her Tuscaloosa apartment again.
Despite the intense heatedness that will surely go with the Iron Bowl again this year, the universities of Alabama and Auburn seem to know how to put aside their differences to lend a helping hand in this time of need.
