Western North Carolina

 

The news is full of Hurricane Melton and the devastation is truly terrible, but what about the people of western North Carolina?

My son has not worked at a paying job since Hurrincae Helene hit. He and his friends have spent twelve and fifteen hour days helping the people in the mountains around them. Yesterday FEMA finally arrived in one of the small towns they were in. It brought water and food, which was nice, but the people of the mountain had already managed to supply some of this for their neighbors, or people would be suffering even more than they are. 

They did finally receive a supply of insulin, which was desperately needed.

The towns and homes of people in western North Carolina are buried under tons of mud. Railroad tracks are washed away. Roads are chasms of empty space. Trees are down, brick walls washed away, bridges gone, everything is contaminated by the mud and water that brought it.

Imagine seeing water twelve feet deep in your downstairs and two hundred pounds of mud in your kitchen island when the water drains away. The woman who lived there was a widow who desperately needed help.

Imagine being 98 years old and hearing the water rush up under your house, then coming up into the living room another three feet! All of her canning jars, which she relies on for food, were covered in mud or washed away.

These are just a few of the stories that are still very real up in the mountains. The people there are used to supporting each other, but watching the dogs sniff through tons of debris looking for bodies is not something you ever get used to.

People are avid watchers when hurricanes are on television, but once those hurricanes pass, it can be weeks, months, years, before life resumes with any quality.