Kiwanis club helps mud slide victims

La Canada Kiwanis Club members took the lead in coordinating disaster relief efforts to help mudslide victims in La Canada, California on February 6. 

Working with La Canada City Hall, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), Kiwanis President Nick Berkuta organized a command post to greet an outpouring of volunteers, which included hundreds of local residents and Kiwanians. Armed with shovels and boots, Kiwanis members bussed volunteers up the hill to help all residents who had contacted City Hall requesting assistance. Working in groups of three and four, volunteers removed mounds of mud "4 feet high and 20 feet long" according to Kiwanis volunteer George Lutes.

Residents described the mudslide as a thick brown river that flowed down the streets and into backyards, carrying boulders, tree trunks and other debris that smashed through walls and filled homes with mud several feet deep. One family had to grab on to tree branches outside their home to keep from being carried away.

"Kiwanis is here for the community. We will always reach out to help those in need," said Kiwanian Wendy Alane Smith.