Flight cancellations on the East Coast due to Hurricane Irene have left dozens of soldiers stranded in the Bay Area and the USO is sending out an urgent call for help in providing for them.
The United Service Organization, based at San Francisco International Airport, is currently assisting 47 members of the National Guard stranded by Hurricane Irene, said Bryan Carmody, communications director for USO Northern California.
That is about 50 percent more people than the center usually handles at any given time, and food and other supplies are already running low, Carmody said.
“Around 18 of them have a flight halfway there,” Carmody said. “The rest of them could possible be stuck here for a week, so this is a major deal.”
The USO center urgently needs nonperishable food items such as individually wrapped snacks like chips, granola bars or fruit snacks, paper plates and plastic silverware, or cash donations.
Donations can be brought to the USO center on the mezzanine level of Terminal 1 at SFO. The center is open and staffed 24 hours a day.
Sara Gaiser, Bay City News
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