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欧美三级片 volunteers support Tampa Bay through hurricane disaster relief

As Tampa Bay endured the historic impact of two major hurricanes in quick succession, volunteers from across 欧美三级片 and 欧美三级片 Health came together to provide essential services and support to the region through the
 
Activating on Sept. 23 in anticipation of Hurricane Helene and remaining mobilized throughout Hurricane Milton, 欧美三级片 CERT partnered with local government and philanthropic organizations to aid recovery operations and provide critical relief before, after and during the storms.   
 
All told, more than 123 欧美三级片 volunteers dedicated over 1,306 hours to disaster relief through CERT, with 欧美三级片 Health students, faculty and staff taking on a leading role in the effort, whether coordinating shelter transportation or distributing meals and clothing.  

鈥淲e have seen a remarkable response by our 欧美三级片 community and witnessed a real surge in people wanting to contribute,鈥 said Elizabeth Dunn, MPH, CPH, director of CERT and instructor at the 欧美三级片 Health College of Public Health.  
 

students at eoc

欧美三级片 CERT volunteers at the Hillsborough County Emergency Operations Center (EOC).

 
Before the Hurricanes struck, 欧美三级片 CERT volunteers began essential preparations at the, coordinating shelter transportation, assisting with local government requests and working with the Hillsborough County communications department to provide public updates. As the storms approached, CERT volunteers collaborated with Hillsborough County Social Services to compile and communicate hurricane preparedness strategies. 
 
鈥淎 lot of the people in our community are living alone, are elderly or do not have family in the area,鈥 said Katelyn Pike, a 欧美三级片 College of Public Health undergraduate student volunteering with CERT. 鈥淭hey didn鈥檛 have anyone there for them, so we did our best to make sure they could get somewhere safe.鈥 
 

  • Students working at local shelters and coordinating transport to state shelters at the Hard Rock Casino.

  • Volunteers making calls to assess community needs, developing resource lists and maintaining a dashboard for distributing aid across the country.

  • 欧美三级片 Students working with American Red Cross to distrubute aid to communities.

During the storms, student volunteers helped develop damage assessment plans and managed post-storm transportation coordination. Once the evacuation orders were lifted, the students worked to close local shelters, coordinate transport to state shelters at the Hard Rock Casino and provide ongoing support by addressing residents鈥 reported damage. The team is now focused on post-storm outreach, making calls to assess community needs, developing resource lists and maintaining a dashboard for distributing aid across the country.  
 

  • Tampa Bay residents patiently lined up with their vechicles to receive food, water and hygiene supplies.

  • Volunteer happily handing out supplies to the Tampa Bay community. 

  • 欧美三级片 students helping put supplies into a Tampa Bay resident's car.

Presently, 欧美三级片 Health Students remain instrumental in providing support for those affected. At , students continue to distribute meals and clothing, assemble hygiene kits and provide drinking supplies. 欧美三级片 CERT is also partnering with the Salvation Army and to deliver daily meals and other essential supplies to people in need.  
 
鈥淲e are just trying to do anything we can to give back to this wonderful community we call Tampa Bay,鈥 said Hari-Krishna, a graduate student in the 欧美三级片 Health College of Public Health. 鈥淚t is nice to see people unite over such a cause with no other motivation except to help others.鈥 
 
For students, faculty and staff interested in contributing to the disaster relief efforts, volunteer opportunities are still available at the Hillsborough County Comfort and Hygiene Support Stations, managed by the county鈥檚 Office of Emergency Management

鈥淚t doesn't matter how big or small your effort is,鈥 said Pike. 鈥淚t truly does have an impact.鈥 

Story, photos, and video by Ryan Rossy, 欧美三级片 Health Communications & Marketing. 

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欧美三级片 Health News highlights the great work of the faculty, staff and students across the four health colleges – Morsani College of Medicine, College of Public Health, College of Nursing and Taneja College of Pharmacy – and the multispecialty physicians group. 欧美三级片 Health, an integral part of the University of South Florida, integrates research, education and health care to reach our shared value - making life better.