The Salvation Army’s Washington Corps recently answered the call of victims of Hurricane Joaquin.

In communities in and around Georgetown, South Carolina, many victims of flooding were relieved by outreach from the Salvation Army’s North Carolina and South Carolina Division. Lt. Bruce Rabon, corps officer for the Washington Corps, spent a week aiding the victims through the use of the corps’ mobile kitchen and canteen. Rabon, and others with the Washington Corps, prepared food and distributed water for seven days, serving around 200 meals per day, he said.

“It was devastating,” Rabon said. “There were several communities that had 280 houses, and it was completely surrounded by water. It was really important. These people had no way to get any food or water. One place, we were actually sending stuff across on a boat to get to the area. Without the canteens, there was just no way for these people to get that daily nourishment they need.”

The Washington Corps is one of 15 in the division that have a canteen/mobile kitchen capability. The rest of the 66 corps in the division are not equipped to go out in communities for disaster relief outreach, Rabon said. In April 2014, when Beaufort County was devastated by a 21-mile-track string of tornadoes, the local corps was able to serve around 7,500 meals through the use of the canteen/mobile kitchen.

“We’re one of the fortunate,” Rabon said. “We have a great capability, and, of course, we’d rather not have to utilize it because it means something bad has happened, but it’s just a good thing for the community to know we have it so when something bad does happen, there is someone willing to support them and be there for them.”

According to Heidi Smith, an advisory board member of the Washington Corps, it is common for corps within a division to aid each other when needed.

“The Salvation Army is the second largest charity in the United States,” Smith said. “Therefore, we have a vast network of corps throughout the country. We provide disaster relief; should we have a disaster in the Washington Corps, vast resources are available to come help us out. Likewise, our corps reciprocates, and in many ways, it’s the most notable things people notice about us — disaster relief and bell ringing. We are glad (the canteen/mobile kitchen) could be utilized for the victims in South Carolina. So we know that should we need it, it’s available right here in our community.”