Courtesy Photo A semi-truck at C&S Carriers in Alpena gets loaded with pallets of items that will be shipped to help the victims of mass flooding caused by Hurricane Helene. There is still time for people to donate before the trucks pull out on Thursday.

ALPENA — An Alpena trucking company is planning to travel to North Carolina with items donated by locals to help the victims of Hurricane Helene.

Helene caused mass flooding which destroyed small towns in the state and caused more than 200 deaths within six states, with hundreds of people still unaccounted for.

Search and rescue operations are ongoing and many roads and bridges needed to get assistance into the towns are impassable.

C&S Carriers owner Travis Konarzewski said the damage caused by the hurricane wiped out many of the resources people need to survive and lending a hand is something he believes strongly in. He said friends he met in the trucking industry when he joined the People’s Convoy, a protest against government mandates held in Washington in February 2022, worked out the logistics to collect items from several communities and truck them down south for distribution.

“We are teaming up with others to take badly needed supplies to North Carolina to provide relief and help the people,” Konarzewski said. “This is how we roll, and if there is any way we can help, we will. We would want others to help if something like this happened in our community.”

Konarzewski said there is a long list of items that are needed in the disaster zones. He said items such as baby formula, baby food, diapers, medical supplies, water, toiletries, and more are needed.

People who want to donate can drop off items at Fitzpatrick’s Hardware and Lumber and Plowman’s Collision in Alpena, Zaremba Equipment in Gaylord, Kitchen Farms in Elmira, Kurtz Car Stereo in Traverse City, and Charlie’s Truck Stop in Grayling.

Donations will be accepted until Thursday before the trucks haul out and meet up on the road to North Carolina.

Konarzewski said he hopes other businesses step up and offer help and other trucking companies around the nation initiate other convoys of their own to help the people, many of whom lost everything.

“Truckers are often one of the first to step up when people need help,” he said. “Trucking is one of the few remaining industries that have strong comradery, pride, and respect. I hope this starts a trend because people there need a lot of help. When you see the photos and videos, it is insane.”

Hurricane Helene made landfall in the Big Bend area of the Florida Gulf Coast as a Category 4 storm late in the evening of Sept. 26. After battering Florida, it dumped historic rainfall in the south.

Items needed include the following: Insulin, EpiPens, empty gas cans, lactose-free baby formula, charcoal, lighter fluid, tools, batteries, instant coffee, small propane takes, tarps, rope, baby formula, baby food, work gloves, nitrile gloves, reusable tote bags, medical supplies, plastic totes, hand sanitizer, plastic water bottles, toilet paper, toiletries, contact solution, denture cream, non-perishable food, trash bags, diapers, sports drinks, bug spray, baby wipes, sunscreen, toothbrushes, toothpaste, feminine hygiene products, pet food, socks, and underwear.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.