Oklahoma Baptists aid Colorado and New Mexico fire victims

“Oklahomans understand that more than anyone,” Porter said.

“We have more federally declared disasters than any other state, with the tornadoes, the floods, the fires and ice storms.”

Porter alluded to a recent Oklahoma Climatological Survey reported that said Oklahoma ranks first in the number of Federal Emergency Management Agency Major Disaster declarations since 2000. Oklahoma, according to the survey's FEMA data, topped a state-by-state list with 33 major disaster declarations from 2000-2012.

Porter said volunteers from First Baptist Church of Chandler traveled to Colorado for a mission trip that began before the fires. He said once the fires started, church members sprang into action with the Oklahoma Baptists' disaster relief laundry unit.

Porter said the unit, built after Hurricane Katrina, has five washers and six dryers in which volunteers can do between 30 and 40 loads of laundry per day for disaster victims. He said victims staying in shelters often have few clothing items and they appreciate having their clothes washed. He said the laundry unit was going to be closed on Wednesday, but more fires flared up because of high winds, resulting in more evacuations.

Porter said he may need to send a large feeding unit and a shower trailer to Colorado because of the influx of evacuees from the Colorado Springs area on Wednesday.

He said about 40 volunteers per week man the feeding unit, which allows volunteers to cook about 25,000 meals a day.