CINCINNATI, Ark. — An organizational meeting to coordinate volunteers in Cincinnati this weekend ended with people guessing.
“We had a long meeting and maybe something was accomplished, but from my viewpoint, nothing was accomplished because I still have no one to send people to,” said the Rev. Andy Newbill, who leads the community’s small Methodist church. “Maybe that has been established and I haven’t been aware.”
Cincinnati, an unincorpoated community in Washington County, lies in leadership limbo because it has no formal government, such a city council or mayor.
“I cannot go out into the community,” said County Judge Marilyn Edwards about the county taking the lead to rebuild the small community. “If I did that without request, they’d think I was trying to run their community.”
Newbill hoped calling an organizational meeting Thursday morning would help local property owners. His church has become one of two focal points in Cincinnati for volunteers looking for guidance.
By 9 a.m., the church filled with more than 60 people, all with intentions to help, from Edwards to a man who wished to stay anonymous and just provide help with his heavy construction equipment.
The American Red Cross arrived, as well as people from the Northwest Arkansas Lions Club, Cargill, Lowe’s and nonprofit groups.
In a church full of people, only a handful of property owners arrived who were impacted by the tornado.
Edwards came to the meeting with several county staff members including department heads from emergency management, road and environmental quality, along with a representative of the state Department of Emergency Management.
County staff and Tim Gehring, from the state department, told the property owners about the state’s Disaster Recovery Center, a two-day information event in Lincoln for the 22 property owners affected in Washington and Benton counties.
Gehring and county chief of staff Dan Short said government assistance, including temporary housing and repair assistance, would be available at the event to uninsured or underinsured tornado victims.
Short also suggested the community establish a committee to take charge of volunteer coordination.
John Randolph, a resident and volunteer firefighter, was identified as a potential leader, but told county officials and Newbill he would inform them later if he would take the lead in volunteer coordination.
Jan Skopecek, a Rogers resident and executive director of Rebuilding Together of Northwest Arkansas, also volunteered to be the point of contact for organizations interested in helping, if Randolph or any other local leader could provide information on where to send volunteers.
After the meeting, Newbill said he still needed someone to step up and take charge, whether they be from the county or Cincinnati.
“I don’t know who was supposed to step up and take that leadership, but whoever it was, they didn’t do it,” Newbill said.
He said he had no access to the damage assessment data gathered by the American Red Cross that had been passed along to the county and the state.
That information could provide locations of damaged property and who needs help, he said.
Rick Johnson, county emergency management deputy director, said the Red Cross data was provided to those who need to know. At that point on Thursday afternoon, Newbill was not among those people.
Edwards said she didn’t know who the community should turn to for leadership. Once the community establishes a leader or committee, the county could assist.
“It is a substation of Lincoln with its fire department,” Edwards said, “but just like Mr. Short told them, ‘You need to get four or five of you people in this community,’ because I can’t go out there and tell those people what to do in their community.”
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Meeting Information
Disaster Recover Center
Members from the Fayetteville Social Security Office and the Arkansas Insurance Department will answer questions and provide Information about temporary housing assistance, home repair/personal property assistance and crisis counseling.
Where: National Guard Armory, 705 Pridemore Drive in Lincoln
When: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday; 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday
Tornado victims can fill out government assistance applications through a toll-free hotline that will begin Friday. The hotline will be open through Jan. 21, excluding the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. Phones will be answered from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The number is 888-683-2366
Source: Arkansas Department Of Emergency Management