This map shows the locations that we worked.
View Iowa Relief Trip in a larger map
My Journal from the week.
Sunday.
Roy 1238 N St SW Arrived at noon. Ate Lunch. Then went to "see" the job site. Roy is grieving the loss of his stuff. We stripped paneling out of the basement and the first four feet of wallboard on the main floor. Ross purchased a circular saw for the job. We also removed the kitchen appliances, cabinets and sink. The biggest difficulty is that Roy has many belongings that he is unwilling to part with. These need to placed out in the yard before we work and taken back in when we are done. Our team worked extremely well together. My goals is to have people watching out for each other more by the end of the week. This seems to be a pretty depressed area. I am tempted to think that the flood water was an improvement to the house. I am surprised by the amount of responsibility that falls on my shoulders as the team leader. I am basically the Forman on the job. It is my job to organize the team, look out for them, make decisions about what we will do, help the homeowner make decisions about house, etc. Monday. This morning we finished up at Roy's house. He wanted the bathroom fixtures to remain, so we took walls out to the 4 foot line and left what we needed to leave. We also removed all of the flooring through out the house. The rule in the flood zone is " If it was touched by flood water, it needs to be touched by bleach." We didn't know that, so we left without bleaching the first floor. Gail may send us back later in the week to finish the job. Kelly 319 929 8307 1210 M st. SW After lunch we started at Kelly's house. It is remarkable what she has done on her own. She is a special ed. teacher and works with autistic children. She had completely removed all the plaster, lathe, and insulation on the first floor. We cleaned, washed and bleached the basement and first floor. Tonight James Bond is here. Debrief took about an hour. But it was good because I got a chance to see more of the big picture. I feel much better about what we are doing here and the organization. Linda and Dave Winkler 319 396 9498 Daughter of Elsie Thompson 87 517 N Ave NW Linda and Dave have emptied the house and plan to sell it. They were there all day working on the garage and helping to carry out trash. I spent most of the day with Steve and Jen working on the basement. We removed paneling, fiberglass insulation, studs, particleboard closets, sink, shower, water heater, and some concrete veneer. The rest worked on removing plaster and lathe from walls and ceilings on the first floor. We didn't quiet finish. There is no water, so we cannot pressure wash and sanitize the basement. The paper work will go back onto a pile for follow up. James and Gail hope to organize a water truck an crew to go back and finish these houses. I struggle relating with Ross. He worked straight through lunch and exhausted himself. I am not sure what drives him. Wednesday Today we finished at Linda and Dave’s. We finished pulling out plaster and bathroom and kitchen stuff. I discovered that the metal corners under the plaster can be rather difficult. Then we wielded the iron bar to take out the flooring. Huff and Puff. We had to use river water to sanitize. It was a little emotional leaving. We had spent the 2 days working side by side with Linda and Dave. They sat and ate lunch with us on the grass. Pop called this morning. I couldn't get the phone out of the holder fast enough to take the call. I cried for a few minutes. It was nice to hear from them when I finally talked with mom. I love you mom and dad. Thursday Becky Beck 412 6th St, SW, 52404 Becky Beck's house had water about 4 feet up the first floor. She has 2 adult children and three teenagers. She had done a lot of work on her house over the past couple of years. new carpet, hardwood flooring. She built cabinets, new windows and cosmetics. All gone. She was in good spirits. Almost all of the personal belongings were out of the house. We carried all the wet, nasty stuff out of the basement. Steve and Jimmy spent the rest of the day power washing and shoveling, and pumping water out of the basement. Everyone else pulled out walls and flooring on the 1st floor. We found massive termite damage. She will need to replace all of the floorboards. At the end of the work day, the heavens opened and let forth with rain. I pushed the team pretty hard to finish up. They were tired. They don't seem to be holding any ill will toward me at this point. Next time I bleach a basement. Wear a Tyvek suit! For every volunteer man hour, fema gives the affected city $20. We earned $5,120 for Cedar Rapids, Ia. |
A few things to remember for the next time I take a trip like this.
Know the procedures
We need a cook
Devotions
Minister
Forman
Bring tools
gloves (bulk)
canister respirators
hard hats
hand tools
power tools
sump pump
wide chisel
dolly's
ax, sledge
prybars of all sizes
professional sprayer
bucket organizer
ladders
Spend more time in the morning making sure that we have the right tools for the day.
We need a cook
Devotions
Minister
Forman
Bring tools
gloves (bulk)
canister respirators
hard hats
hand tools
power tools
sump pump
wide chisel
dolly's
ax, sledge
prybars of all sizes
professional sprayer
bucket organizer
ladders
Spend more time in the morning making sure that we have the right tools for the day.