"As the survivors of the storm are literally carrying their memories and treasures to the curb, we are going to come alongside them and help care for the emotional and spiritual trauma they have endured." -- Jack Munday, director of the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team

Contact: Erik Ogren, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 704-577-2109, eogren@bgea.org

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 7 /Christian Newswire/ -- Crisis-trained chaplains from the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team have deployed to Windsor, N.C., where Tropical Storm Nicole caused extensive flooding damage. Windsor, a town of more than 3,000, is the county seat of Bertie County and is located in the Inner Banks region of eastern North Carolina.

N.C. Governor Bev Perdue has declared a state of emergency. News reports indicate that as much as 80 percent of the town of Windsor was flooded at one point. The storm is being blamed for six deaths in N.C.

The Billy Graham Rapid Response Team is deploying in coordination with Samaritan's Purse, the international relief organization headed by Franklin Graham, who is also president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. 

"We kept a close eye on Tropical Storm Nicole last week and were saddened by the devastation this has caused," said Jack Munday, director of the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team. "As the survivors of the storm are literally carrying their memories and treasures to the curb, we are going to come alongside them and help care for the emotional and spiritual trauma they have endured."

The chaplains are currently in Windsor and have begun meeting with survivors of the flood. The deployment is expected to last up to two weeks.

The Billy Graham Rapid Response Team is a nationwide network of chaplains across 40 states that are specifically trained to deal with crisis situations. Since the ministry was launched in 2002, it has deployed following dozens of natural and man-made disasters, including hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, fires and shootings.  Visit www.billygraham.org/rrt or www.facebook.com/BGRapidResponseTeam for more information.

About BGEA
The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, which is celebrating 60 years of ministry in 2010, directs a wide range of domestic and international ministries, including: large-scale festivals led by evangelists Franklin Graham and Will Graham; Dare to Be a Daniel, a youth evangelism training project; My Hope World Evangelism Through Television; the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team of crisis-trained chaplains; and many others through print, television, telephone, radio and the Internet. For more information, please visit www.billygraham.org. Get BGEA news updates on Twitter @ Twitter.com/BGEAMediaPR.