Florence cleanup underway in the Carolinas
Monday, October 3, 8:03AM
Floodwaters have gone down in most areas and Rapid Response volunteers are cleaning up flood-damaged homes at the following locations.
Trenton, North Carolina: A Rapid Response base has been setup in Trenton. From this base, staff and volunteers are reaching into the towns of Trenton and Pollocksville. Some houses in these towns had several feet of water in the second stories.
Lumberton, North Carolina: Floodwaters have finally receded in Lumberton. The water didn’t come up as high as it did in Hurricane Matthew two years ago. However, a lot of houses had several feet of water in them.
Conway, South Carolina: The floodwater are just receding in the Conway, South Carolina area. Volunteers are doing cleanup work in outlying areas where the water has already gone down.
Chaplain Ministry
Chaplain ministry workers at each base are reaching out to those devastated by Hurricane Florence. They are distributing Bibles and Christian literature, first aid kits, and cleaning buckets.
Loaves & Fishes Food Kitchen
Food kitchen volunteers are serving meals in Lumberton, North Carolina. They are providing between 1,000 and 1,500 hot meals a day.
Hurricane Florence Brings Record Rainfall to the Carolinas
Monday, September 18, 8:03AM
Hurricane Florence made landfall on the North Carolina coast on September 14 as a category 1 storm. The storm moved slowly across the Carolinas dumping a deluge of heavy rain. Swansboro, North Carolina, received 34 inches of rain, breaking the all-time record for North Carolina.
Before Hurricane Florence hit the coast, CAM team members headed to North Carolina and South Carolina. They were prepared to take action as soon as possible after the storm. Florence quickly downgraded to a tropical storm and thankfully did not bring as much devastation as predicted. However, the storm left many needs in its path.
CAM’s response immediately after the disaster
As rivers swelled following Florence’s landfall, our Search & Rescue teams took stranded people to safe locations. One of their rescues involved taking more than forty elderly people from a housing complex to higher ground to escape rapidly rising floodwaters.
Our Loaves & Fishes food kitchen set up in Lumberton, North Carolina, and is serving hot meals to evacuees. Following disasters, people often have no way to cook and can’t buy groceries. Having home-cooked meals prepared for them is a tremendous blessing. Our chaplain ministry workers are working alongside the kitchen crew, ministering to the spiritual needs of the distressed.
Rapid Response teams wait for water to subside
Waters are still rising at the time of this writing. Our Rapid Response cleanup teams are waiting for the waters to subside so they can begin research and start cleaning out homes damaged by the floodwaters.
The flooding spanned North Carolina and South Carolina. This will no doubt be a large-scale cleanup project. If needed, we will also rebuild homes for flood survivors in the months to come.
If you wish to help respond to our “neighbors” affected by Hurricane Florence, your contribution will be a blessing. If more funds are received than needed for this project, they will be used in other disaster projects in the USA.
Days after Florence’s landfall, rivers continue to rise
Monday, September 17, 8:03AM
Rains from Florence are beginning to subside in the Carolinas, but rivers continue to rise. Some will crest later this week.
Continue to pray for our Search & Rescue teams, chaplain ministry workers, and Loaves & Fishes food kitchen volunteers as they minister to those affected by the storm. Pray also for our Rapid Response team members as they research needs and prepare for what will likely be a large-scale cleanup project.
As this project develops throughout the week, we will keep you posted.
Search & Rescue teams move people to safety
Saturday, September 15, 7:42PM
Facing rising floodwaters and drenching rain, our Search & Rescue teams are busy taking people to safety in Lumberton, North Carolina.
“This is unbelievable!” a team member reports. “There are requests for help all over the city.” The Search & Rescue teams are presently working to take sixty elderly people in a housing complex to higher ground to escape rapidly rising floodwaters.
Pray for our team members as they respond to the many requests for help. The situation will no doubt worsen as forecasters predict that heavy rains will continue for at least another day.
Here are some photos from this evening’s rescue operations in Lumberton.
Severe flooding continues to develop
Saturday, September 15, 6:05AM
Florence, now a tropical storm, is hovering over the Carolinas, dumping a massive amount of rain. Although downgraded to a tropical storm, Florence is far from over and the main devastation is likely yet to come. Forecasters say that heavy rain will continue into early next week. Even now, nearly a million people are without electricity and communities are severely flooded. We are bracing ourselves for increased flooding over the next few days.
Our Search & Rescue teams plan to begin their work this morning. “The water is rising all around us and it is only a matter of time until major flooding begins,” reports Marcus Miller.
The beginning of the next week, our Rapid Response teams hope to figure out where to start in what will likely be a large-scale cleanup project spanning the Carolinas and Virginia. We will keep you posted as we get a clearer picture of the extent of the devastation.
Loaves & Fishes food kitchen update
Friday, September 14, 12:05PM
CAM’s Loaves & Fishes food kitchen is preparing to serve meals in Lumberton, North Carolina. They are unable to set up the food kitchen trailer at this time due to high wind. But as soon as the wind subsides, and people start to venture out, the kitchen crew hopes to begin serving meals.
Florence makes landfall
Friday, September 14, 9:01AM
Hurricane Florence made landfall at 7:15 a.m. near Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina. Marcus Miller, Ohio Search & Rescue coordinator, sent the following report:
It appears that the most affected area is along the coast at this time . . . This storm is moving slowly. This means we may have to wait a few more hours until the rivers are full and the homes begin to flood inland. It is only a matter of time . . . We are still praying and have a desire for your prayers as well.
Florence approaches landfall
Friday, September 14, 6:29AM
Hurricane Florence is moving slowly inland and landfall is imminent. Forecasters expect Florence to stall as it makes landfall, bringing dangerous wind, huge storm surges, and a deluge of rainfall throughout the day today. Some areas have already gotten 20 inches of rain and this is only the beginning of the rainfall.
Our Search & Rescue teams are waiting out the storm and ready to respond as needed. The map above shows the location of our Ohio Search & Rescue team in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Pray for them and our other Search & Rescue teams as they prepare to reach out to those affected by the storm.
Update from the Ohio Search & Rescue team
Thursday, September 13, 1:18PM
The seven Ohio team members are headed for Fayetteville, North Carolina. “We are enjoying the sunny weather currently but realize this will be short lived,” says Marcus Miller, Ohio SAR coordinator. “Our goal is to arrive around 2:00 this afternoon, set up a base, and begin reaching out to the local officials. At this time our main focus area will be the Lumberton, North Carolina area.” Our other SAR teams plan to be stationed in Sumter, South Carolina.
CAM makes initial preparation for Hurricane Florence.
Tuesday, September 11, 5:05PM
Hurricane Florence is barreling toward the East Coast and is predicted to hit the coast late Thursday night or early Friday morning with wind gusts in the 140 mph range. The storm is forecasted to bring catastrophic flooding in Virginia and North Carolina in the days following.
Our Rapid Response teams and Search & Rescue teams are on standby, prepared to respond as needed when the storm hits. CAM’s Loaves & Fishes Food kitchen is also gearing up to provide food for survivors if needed.
We will keep you posted as Hurricane Florence develops. Please pray for the millions of people who are in the storm’s path.