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IBEW Assists Massachusetts Tornado Victims

June 21, 2011

IBEW Local 2324 Business Manager John D. Rowley Sr., right, donated $5000 to the local Red Cross on behalf of IBEW members.

While national weather reports have focused on major flooding and violent storms in the Midwest, a series of damaging tornadoes swept across Western Massachusetts on June 1.

Following the storms, workers from throughout the area jumped into action, including members of Springfield, Mass., Local 2324 who are employed by Verizon.

Three tornadoes touched down in Hampden and Springfield counties at rush hour, killing four people and injuring hundreds more. According to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, the severe weather caused an estimated $25 million in damage to public property and more than 900 homes that were either completely destroyed or suffered major damage. President Obama approved federal relief funding for the communities.

Says Local 2324 Business Manager John D. Rowley Sr., who donated $5,000 to the local Red Cross on behalf of IBEW members:

When people who live in the communities we serve suffer this type of loss, everyone needs to help.

According to Paige Thayer, deputy director of the Pioneer Valley Red Cross chapter, it could be months before her organization will finish its efforts in the area.

Says Rowley:

The members of IBEW Local 2324 have been working hard every day to restore service since the tornadoes devastated several communities in our area. While the membership focuses on fixing communication services, hundreds of workers and volunteers of the American Red Cross are working to repair lives

Homepage photo used under a Creative Commons license from Flickr user Massachusetts National Guard.