The U-Haul Cos. of Eastern and Western Oregon are offering 30 days of free self-storage or U-Box container usage to people who’ve been affected by the flooding in Northwest Oregon. Participating facilities are in Lake Oswego, Ore., and Vancouver, Wash. Families who need more information can contact the U-Haul store nearest them or visit the company’s website, according to a press release.
The region has been saturated by continuous storms this week, including a record 3.2 inches of rainfall over a 24-hour stretch on Monday. Another three inches fell on Tuesday and more rain is in the forecast.
"It rains here all the time, but we don't get a lot of rain at one time—and that's the problem," said David Scheafer, president of U-Haul Co. of Western Oregon. "We've had people calling us already—city officials—asking if we can do anything. We've built a lot of new storage here. We want to offer relief to victims of this flooding.”
Through the U-Box program, storm victims can pick up a custom-designed trailer and take a storage container with them. Alternatively, U-Haul can store the container in its secure warehouse, or pick up and deliver it to another location.
Storm victims can also take advantage of the U-Haul Take a Box, Leave a Box program, which enables customers to use recycled boxes at no charge. Instead of discarding reusable boxes and bins, U-Haul encourages local residents to drop them off at the nearest U-Haul location, allowing other people to use them.
U-Haul stores also offer supplies to help residents with storm recovery, such as boxes, tarps, propane and propane tanks, according to the release.
Established in 1945, U-Haul International Inc. has more than 40 million square feet of storage space at more than 1,200 owned and managed facilities throughout North America.
