FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                 

Media Contact: Lynda Halligan, Director of Communications and Public Affairs

Phone: 714-285-2800 Email: Lynda@aocds.org

 

ORANGE COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT AND DEPUTY SHERIFFS’ ASSOCIATION COLLABORATE ON MASSIVE DONATION FOR TEXAS FLOOD RELIEF

Santa Ana, CA – September 12, 2017

The Orange County Sheriff’s Department (OCSD) and the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs (AOCDS) are collaborating on a major donation to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) in Houston, Texas. Thanks to donor Paul Musco of SKITS, LLC in Santa Ana, the two agencies were able to fill a 26-foot box truck with public safety equipment and emergency supplies to be delivered directly to the HCSO. Items include nearly 1,500 rain ponchos, more than 1,500 safety vests, nearly 3,500 towels and more than 1,600 baseball caps with LED lights. The total value of these supplies equals about $157,000. AOCDS retirees, Deputy Herb Siegmund and Sergeant Steve Torres, have volunteered their time to deliver the goods to Texas and headed out first thing this morning.

This generous donation will help with the colossal cleanup effort underway in Houston and its surrounding areas since Hurricane Harvey tore through town and ripped apart lives. The category 4 hurricane made landfall near the Texas Gulf Coast on August 25th. Severe rain, high winds and major flooding pummeled Houston, our nation’s 4th largest city. The devastation is vast.

AOCDS President Tom Dominguez says he’s honored to get involved in this effort. “To see these heart-wrenching images on television and the internet and hear these stories of families, who have lost everything, makes it almost impossible not to do something to help, especially knowing that Florida residents are just now dealing with a hurricane disaster of their own.” Undersheriff Don Barnes acknowledges that “they may not have the immediate need for the safety vests in Houston and they can make the determination through FEMA to take all those donated items and drive straight to the East Coast to Florida or some of the other states that might be in need.”

If you would like to donate to Hurricane Harvey disaster relief, go to https://www.redcross.org/donate/hurricane-harvey or find another reputable organization of your choice.