Rapper Flo Rida, Miami Gardens team up to help hurricane-damaged Harlem Heights
MIAMI GARDENS - Miami Gardens and the rapper Flo Rida are teaming up to help victims of Hurricane Ian in the devastated community of Harlem Heights just north of Fort Myers.
CBS4's Peter D'Oench spoke with Flo Rida at Miami Carol City Park at N.W. 32nd Ave. and 185th St., where he is sponsoring a trailer that will bring hurricane relief supplies to the community of less than 1,400 people and where those supplies are being collected again on Thursday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. before being sent to Harlem Heights.
Flo Rida said, "We feel it is important to give back in any shape or form and this is the trailer that will be bringing supplies to people going through this devastation. I am blessed with my career and I have always said if anything happens to people I will give back."
Flo Rida said he was devastated by the images of the destruction.
"Just watching all these images on social media," he said, "It just blew me away."
Miami Gardens Vice Mayor Reggie Leon, one of the organizers of the effort, said he heard from Jacquelyn McMiller with the Leon County NAACP and the site acted quickly.
Leon said "We want to send non-perishable goods and items like women's hygiene products and clothing for kids and water and all sorts of items. It could be us next week but now it is them and we wanted to make sure we continue our support for our sister cities, especially as the largest African American city in the state, we wanted to make sure we show our support to cities that look like us."
Among those donating bottled water, Dr. Martha Johnson Rutledge of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority said, "We purchased these supplies for our hurricane and we don't need them and so we bring them to help others. It's important to help out other communities. They were devastated."
Gregory Burton also donated bottled water along with members of his Carol City Chiefs youth football team.
He said, "From our understanding of Hurricanes and our memory of Hurricane Andrew there wasn't much-bottled water then."
CBS4 also spoke by Zoom with McMiller who said "Harlem Heights has been decimated. This is a very disenfranchised community and it will be very difficult to bounce back. The storm surge was tremendous and there was a huge amount of damage."
She says Harlem Heights appreciates the support from Miami Gardens.
"They called me this morning and I was so glad to speak to the people there and so glad to know that help is on its way," she said.