Heartland Flyer Brings Loads Of Supplies To Oklahoma Tornado Victims

Help is still pouring in from around the nation several weeks after deadly tornadoes hit Oklahoma.

Piece by piece, disaster relief workers in Oklahoma City unloaded more than 60 supply bins off the "Heartland Flyer" train from Fort Worth and onto a truck headed to Moore.

"So much devastation and so many people's lives affected one way or another," said Matt Cantrell, distribution manager for Disaster Assistance Church of Christ. "It's good to be there for moral support, also for supplies." 

Cantrell's group of church volunteers lugged each 18-gallon tote stocked with household goods for families devastated by the May tornadoes. For weeks, a relief group called America Recovers out of Connecticut worked with Amtrak to get the precious cargo delivered.

"We use the train to bring supplies when we need it," said Craig Moody, Railroad Manager for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation. "And obviously, this was a disaster type situation, so all resources are used in the best way possible, this was a way for us to give supplies to the people who need it."

People like Linda Brewster, who lost so much in the storms, met the volunteers at a home in Moore.

"All of my neighborhood is gone and God saved us because he left our house there with four walls. It's unlivable, but we are there," Brewster said.

Many tornado victims walked away with packed boxes of supplies, crates of water and a big smile.

"I just can't imagine all the people all over the world, who are helping in such devastation, and I just want to thank everybody," Brewster said.

Many of the families who lost children in Plaza Towers Elementary School also pick up supplies and said they are still in need of items like furniture, home appliances as well as hotel money and transportation.

If you'd like to help out those families who lost loved ones in the tornadoes, you can visit the Plaza Towers Survivor Fund at www.gofundme.com/31ju98 and on Facebook.