DALLAS \u2014 After a deadly apartment explosion in Dallas left many residents without a home, the challenge of starting over is just beginning.<\/p>\n
A study published by the National Library of Medicine found that nearly half of U.S. households lack the resources or plans needed for an emergency. And when disaster strikes, it\u2019s often everyday necessities that become the first priority.<\/p>\n
In the days following the explosion at the Spanish Hills Apartments in Dallas\u2019 Oak Cliff neighborhood, many displaced families faced the difficult task of replacing the items they rely on every day.<\/p>\n
At St. Vincent de Paul of North Texas in Dallas, racks of clothing, household goods and furniture are helping fill an immediate need for people starting over.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou need your basic necessities for anything,\u201d said shopper Stephanie Cardiel. \u201cHonestly, I can\u2019t even imagine starting from nothing at all, having to start from zero.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cardiel, who recently learned she is expecting a child, says thrifting helps stretch a budget. But for families affected by disaster, stores like this can provide a critical first step toward recovery.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s dishware, furnishings, furniture in the back, toys \u2014 really anything and everything to rebuild a home,\u201d said Luis Gonzalez with St. Vincent de Paul of North Texas. \u201cFor a family who has lost everything, this is a place where they can come and find gently used items that can help restore them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whether the disaster is a fire, flood, tornado or explosion, Gonzalez says the need is often the same.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny one of us is a tragedy away from being in a crisis,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The organization is providing vouchers to people affected by the apartment explosion. Gonzalez says something as simple as clothing, shoes, dishes or household essentials can help someone move forward again.<\/p>\n
\u201cGo into your home and look around,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cIf you lost everything, what would be the first thing you\u2019d want to replace? Maybe it\u2019s a couch. Maybe it\u2019s a piece of clothing. You come into our thrift store and walk around and see things that call to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to United for ALICE, approximately 42% of Texas households struggle to afford necessities such as housing, food, transportation and healthcare. For families facing the aftermath of a disaster, replacing those everyday items can feel overwhelming.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would mean everything,\u201d Cardiel said. \u201cJust knowing there\u2019s help when people need it most.\u201d<\/p>\n
Long after the emergency response ends, recovery continues \u2014 one household item at a time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DALLAS \u2014 After a deadly apartment explosion in Dallas left many residents without a home, the challenge of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":315160,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[3564,1061,132,3565,1570,102,104,103,223,1571,1225,82,27,26986,1569,835],"class_list":["post-340228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas","tag-app-community","tag-app-public-safety","tag-austin","tag-community-news","tag-ctv","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-headlines","tag-dallas-news","tag-news","tag-nicolette-perdomo","tag-public-safety","tag-san-antonio","tag-texas","tag-texas-editors-picks","tag-texas-what-you-need-to-know","tag-vod"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/340228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=340228"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/340228\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/315160"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=340228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=340228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=340228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}