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Triad diaper bank reopens some of its warehouse after Weaver fire

Interns show their enthusiasm at the wrapping space at the Diaper Bank of North Carolina's warehouse in Winston-Salem. Photo courtesy of Michelle Old.

The Diaper Bank of North Carolina is starting to reopen its Triad Branch warehouse in Winston-Salem after a nearby chemical fire forced them to close their doors early last month.

The Greater Triad Branch is located beside the Winston Weaver fertilizer plant. The organization says their building on Indiana Avenue sustained roof damage after the recent fire at the Weaver site.

Over a million diapers and hygiene products had to be set aside and have been off-limits ever since. The Diaper Bank is still waiting for them to be tested for contamination. And it's unclear when the roof will be fully repaired. 

Michelle Old, CEO and founder of the organization, says there's been a lot of cleaning at the site and a portion of the warehouse is now reopened. The Diaper Bank continues to send products from its Durham location to serve the Triad.

“Everything is in limbo," she says. "And every day that we wait means that we have to put funds towards buying more product and at the same time gas prices have gone on, so we're bringing in diapers every single week to serve the community and that is costing us twice as much as it did before.”

Old says they currently need more space but are locked into their lease for another year. 

She says they're still looking for more volunteers to help package diapers and are accepting donations.

The Diaper Bank of North Carolina distributes over 100,000 diapers monthly in the Triad, which means they serve about 2,000 babies each month.

Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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