VIDEO/PHOTOS: Pickens County has a new program to help first responders and volunteers be proactive instead of reactive when disaster strikes. Disasters, such as Hurricane Helene and Table Rock wildfires, have taken a toll on Pickens County. Leaders want to know what organizations in the area are willing to volunteer in a disaster whether it be providing shelter, meals, supplies or cleanup. Itโs called the โVolunteer Organization Active in Disasterโ program. โIt helps us to be more efficient, rather than one person trying to take on one effort or one particular job,โ said Chief Billy Gibson, Pickens County Emergency Services. โYou might have folks that have a similar skill set. You might have one or two folks that say, โhey, I do tree work or I can run a chainsaw.โโ It takes the stress off of Pickens County Emergency Services by already knowing ahead of time what organizations are here to help and how. โSometimes the volunteer effort can actually become an incident within your incident because youโre trying to coordinate that,โ said Gibson.
