RALEIGH - The Wake County Hurricane Disaster Victims Center in Raleigh is well on its way to meeting the goal set by President Bush last week to have all evacuees out of shelters by next month.
Of the 385 evacuees brought to the shelter at the beginning of September, only 181 remain. The shelter will close Friday, but services still will be available to everyone.
"Our goal here is not just to make a temporary shelter a long-term option," said Sharon Brown, public information director of Wake County. "We've now put into high-gear helping them connect with services and loved ones."
As of Thursday, approximately 204 people had left the shelter to reunite with family and friends across the country, and Brown said 67 families left to establish a life in North Carolina.
In addition to the almost 400 evacuees brought to Raleigh on three planes, more than 400 evacuees from the Gulf Coast made their way to Wake County on their own, according to a Friday press release. At least 160 of them used services at the shelter to file disaster claims.
Jane Martin, communications and marketing director of Wake County Human Services, said there were a few people who came to the shelter to find their loved ones, but that only two or three families decided staying in North Carolina is the best solution.
Martin said everyone is working to make sure the people leaving the shelter have a long-term plan.
She said many of the people at the shelter now are deciding what to do, and the staff will help them as needed. "We're assigning case managers to deal with them personally," Martin said.
Social workers and case managers will make sure shelter residents have filed for all available benefits and have found housing before leaving, according to a Friday press release.
