The Aftermath of Florence

Residents of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and surrounding states are still reeling from Hurricane Florence, and officials are only now getting a clear sense of the scale of the devastation. Up to 33 people, including an infant, have died, with 25 of the deaths occurring in North Carolina. Areas such as Wilmington, North Carolina, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, New Bern, North Carolina and have endured more than 26 inches of water.

pictures of New Bern, North Carolina from The Washington Post

pictures of New Bern, North Carolina from The Washington Post

Roughly 400,000 homes and business have lost power, including all three states. Georgia has called for a state of emergency due to flash flooding.

Mackenzi Hursh, a friend of mine, recently moved to Fayetteville, North Carolina from the midwest, where “mother nature never really hit [her] with anything crazy other than snow, rain and ice.”

Florence was the first hurricane she ever experienced.

“When you have never been in one before, you have no clue what to do or how to prepare,” she said.

Some people said nothing was going to happen, she said; others warned of flooding. Lack of preparedness is coming when hurricanes hit, and under-prepared states faced disastrous consequences.

“I was terrified,” she said, noting that she and her family were unsure how much food and water to store. Luckily they wound up buying just enough.

“We did lose power for about 12 hours, which was miserable because it was very hot and we have two dogs who like to snuggle, so that didn’t go over very well,” she said. “We are very blessed to have no major damage or injuries.”

Places like Elevation Church have opened up their doors at their Matthews campus to Convoy of Hope. Also, Direct Relief have been sending out medical emergencies kits and backpacks along the east coast since last Tuesday.

Here’s how you can help:

Give at World Vision.