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Manville Residents In Need Of Cleaning Supplies, Nonperishable Food, Other Essentials After Ida Flooded Homes

MANVILLE, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- Residents in Manville and other parts of New Jersey continue to clean up from the remnants of Hurricane Ida.

As CBS2's Meg Baker reported Thursday, they need help.

"Thank God for the donations we're received so far, because the baby lost all of her stuff," said Amanda Monteroso, a mother of four.

Monteroso's one-year-old daughter's room was completely destroyed. It's now gutted and smells of Clorox as a fan blows to stop mold from spreading.

Her three other kids are in school.

"I'm glad they're back at school because it keeps them busy," Monteroso said. "But it's coming and getting school clothes, it's coming and getting their soccer stuff, it's trying to have normalcy when you just want to cry."

RELATED STORY: Police Warn Looters, Scammers Trying To Take Advantage Of Storm Victims In Flood-Ravaged Manville, NJ

Others like Monteroso are in great need of cleaning supplies. Once homeowners rip everything out of their homes, it's time to disinfect.

The local VFW is a distribution center accepting donations.

"Mops, buckets, cleansers," said VFW's Mark Greggor.

"It's the mud that comes along with the floodwater. So, that's the problem. We need paper towels, we need trash bags," said Manville resident Anne Maria Kotch. "When you think of your countertops and everything that was below you countertop, in your kitchen cabinets, all this perishable stuff has to be thrown out."

That includes diapers, baby food, shampoo, soap and food.

"Canned items, items that don't need refrigeration. There's no refrigeration, there' basically no power in any of these homes. Anything that can be eaten right out of the package, that's what we're looking for right now," said Greggor.

Carolyn Hespe pulled up with a carload of things to donate.

"Why was that important for you to help out?" Baker asked.

"I grew up in this area and I watched Manville get flooded a lot," Hespe said.

Heavy duty plastic bags are also useful for transporting drywall and other demolition materials to the curb.

If you would like to make a monetary donation, click here.

CBS2's Meg Baker contributed to this report.

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