Wilma's Despair Lingers For Many As Hot Line Calls Continue
By Kimberly Miller, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer, Saturday, December 24, 2005
Nearly 1,000 people called a special mental health hot line in the weeks following Hurricane Wilma's landfall looking for assistance with problems such as depression and anxiety.
The hot line, part of FEMA-backed Project HOPE, was offered to counties hit hardest by the Oct. 24 storm including Palm Beach, St. Lucie, Broward and Miami-Dade.
With the holidays here, and many people still homeless — some just realizing the extent of Wilma's damage — hot line officials warn that feelings of depression and hopelessness may increase as the new year approaches.
The hot line, run through the Florida Department of Children and Families, will remain open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week through the holidays.
"There's a delayed reaction to storms," said Robert Moore, senior vice president of ValueOptions, the private company contracted to handle the crisis calls. "People do what they need to do when the storm is there and after, but later on, we have a lot of depression and anxiety attacks, and it's exacerbated for those who may have had a preexisting condition."
Moore said the majority of hot line calls — about 770 — came in November as FEMA got the word out about the crisis counseling, and electricity and phone services were restored. A few people still suffering from Hurricane Katrina also contacted the hot line and are mixed in with the total number of calls, but Moore said in October and November most calls were Wilma related. He did not have numbers for December.
Moore's employees who answer the hot line are registered nurses or have degrees in the mental health field. They refer callers to local behavioral health and counseling services, but also amassed a resource database of other services after callers complained of problems such as the lack of blue tarps and problems filing FEMA and insurance claims.
"We don't want to just say 'We don't know,' when people call," Moore said. "We want to get them to the people who can help them."
FEMA officials said in some cases trained Project HOPE staff will visit callers to provide crisis counseling in person.
On Jan. 1, the state is scheduled to take over the hot line services, but the phone number, (866) 518-1825, will remain the same.
Source
Miller, Kimberly. "Wilma's despair lingers for many, as hot line calls continue." www.palmbeachpost.com. Palm Beach Post. December 24, 2005.