SMITH ISLAND -- Two new groups of volunteers headed to Smith Island on Monday to help with the cleanup efforts nearly two weeks after a tornado came ashore on the island.
The volunteers, from Oakridge Baptist Church and Christ United Methodist Church in Salisbury, arrived on the island at around 10 a.m. They wasted little time getting to work, possibly because, at least for one volunteer, the island reminded them of home.
"It just reminds me a lot of where I grew up and I just like to be able to help someone clean up after something like this," said Krista Warfield.
For others, like Gary McCabe, a pastor at Oakridge Baptist, just being able to lend a helping hand was exciting enough.
"We were super-excited to get invited to come out," said McCabe. "It feels really good to be able to do stuff right here on the Eastern Shore, and the people here are just so grateful and so hospitable, so it just feels really, really good to be a part."
McCabe brought along about 12 volunteers, and in total there were around two dozen volunteers on the island on Monday. Most of their work during the morning hours of Aug. 15 was spent clearing yards in Ewell of fallen trees.
"Just a lot of tree debris, tree trash, putting it from the yards into the trailer and into the back of the trucks and taking it to the burn lot," said Warfield.
The volunteers also filled up trucks, which were provided by Somerset County, with the piles of debris that the crew from last week organized. Those piles consisted of anything and everything, from sheets of metal, to lights, and even some bikes and scooters. After breaking for lunch, the crews packed up and moved over to Rhodes Point, where the majority of remaining work needs to be done.