Carolinas Worn Out by Hurricane Florence and Long Aftermath

WILMINGTON, N.C.—Hurricane Florence is still wearing out the Carolinas, where residents have endured an agonizing week of violent winds, torrential rain, widespread flooding, power outages, and death.

Frustration and sheer exhaustion are building as thousands of people wait to go home seven days after the storm began battering the coast. Florence is blamed for at least 37 deaths, including those of two women who drowned when a sheriff’s van taking them to a mental health facility was swept off a road.

“I’m just ready for this to be over, to be honest,” said Evan Jones, a college student who evacuated from Wilmington and doesn’t know when he will get back. “I’m trying to get it all out of my head.”

With the remnants of Florence finally out to sea and skies bright over rivers still swelling with muddy water, President Donald Trump visited the disaster zone, riding through soggy neighborhoods and helping pass out warm meals at a church in the hard-hit coastal town of New Bern.

“How’s the house?” Trump asked one person. “You take care of yourself.”

President Donald Trump greets people while distributing food after Hurricane Florence in New Bern, N.C., Sept. 19, 2018. Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

People Trying to Cope

There wasn’t any presidential fanfare 120 miles away in Fayetteville. There, Roberta and Joseph Keithley had been sleeping on cots set up in a school classroom since Friday. They still didn’t know if their home was ruined.

“It’s getting a little frustrating, but you have to deal with it and roll with the punches,” said Roberta Keithley, 73. “It’s just another hurdle to get over in life.”

READ MORE

• North Carolina Man Returns Home to Find His House Crushed
• Video: Pregnant Mother and Her Family Saved From Florence Floods

To the south, daybreak brought a return of floodwaters to Nichols, South Carolina, which also was inundated by Hurricane Matthew two years ago. The flooding from Florence had subsided, only to get worse again.