Help Without Hesitation: The Salvation Army’s Response to Flash Flooding in Berwick
As floodwater filled the basement of a Briar Creek home in Berwick, Pennsylvania, a woman stood outside. Inside, the basement apartment her mother had recently moved into was soaked and ruined by the rising water. The mother had moved in just weeks earlier to help care for her brother, who lives upstairs and faces health challenges. The flood wiped out much of what she brought with her.
Then a man and his teenage son walked up with a simple question:
“How can we help?”
The man was Captain Michael Buzzard, Corps Officer at The Salvation Army Berwick Corps. Alongside his son Jake, he spent the day going door to door in the hardest-hit areas offering cleaning kits, water, tools, and a listening ear to those impacted by what residents called the worst flooding in over a decade.
Immediate Action from People Who Know What to Do
The night of the flooding, Capt. Buzzard checked in with the fire department. While first responders didn’t need food or support that evening, he knew the community would need help by morning. At 10:30 a.m., he and Jake were on the ground with supplies in hand.
Drawing from his past disaster deployments with The Salvation Army in North Carolina and Vermont, Capt. Buzzard knew how to respond quickly and compassionately. They distributed cleaning kits, packed with mops, gloves, disinfectant, and bleach and helped remove waterlogged furniture.
Back at the Briar Creek home, the woman’s mother soon appeared wearing her daughter’s shoes that were too big, the only ones she had left. Capt. Buzzard and Jake stepped in immediately. They stopped by a local hardware store and purchased tools to cut up the soaked carpet. Later, they returned with food and a new pair of shoes, discreetly delivered through her daughter and friends to help preserve her dignity.
It was a simple gesture – one that showed the kind of thoughtful, person-first care that defines The Salvation Army’s response.
“That’s what we do,” Capt. Buzzard said. “We listen, we pay attention, and we meet people exactly where they are.”
In total, Capt. Buzzard and Jake visited nearly 50 homes along Briar Creek, a neighborhood where floodwater damaged some homes entirely while sparing others just feet away. Along with material support, they offered emotional and spiritual care.
At one home, an elderly veteran politely declined a cleanup kit, saying he had what he needed. But before they left, he paused and said:
“I’m just really glad you came to my door. It’s nice to know there are still people who care.”
With more rain in the forecast, cleanup kits remain available, and follow-up visits continue for homes with damaged furnaces and water heaters. Thanks to support from Agape, a local partner in Bloomsburg, they even arranged a new bed for the mother in the Briar Creek home.
How to Support Disaster Response Efforts
The Salvation Army didn’t wait for a call. Capt. Buzzard and his son stepped in because local teams are trained, trusted, and supported to act fast.
Thanks to donor support and our local presence, the Berwick Corps was able to meet urgent needs, buying food, protective gear, cleaning supplies, and even a new pair of shoes, without delay or red tape.
“When you give to your local Salvation Army, you’re helping us respond in moments like this,” Capt. Buzzard said. “We don’t wait for a headline. We just go.”
If you need support or clean up kits in Berwick, call 570-759-1214 or email epaberwick@use.salvationarmy.org. You can support Berwick’s response and future responses by donating online.