Hurricane Matthew Aftermath in South Florida, North Carolina

South Florida Hurricane

South Florida has been hit by Hurricane Matthew, and this morning residents came out of their homes to take a look at the damage. Deerfield Beach is the home of the international Fishing Pier which closed due to damage it sustained from the winds of Hurricane Matthew. The entrance to the 976 foot long pier was blocked off by the sheriff’s department. The pier was relatively fine by an onlooker’s perspective, but the structural beams were damaged below the pier. Officials are worried the pier could collapse if too many residents walk on it. The blocking is mostly precautionary, and less devastating than originally expected. Many residents were anticipating the rising sun with baited breath, hoping to see the sunrise. The residents lined up without walking on the pier, making the opinion of the sheriff’s department to close off the pier justified. In other areas of Deerfield Beach there were a large amount of power outages. Repairs are already underway, and power lines are being erected where they had fallen. Local traffic in the area is relatively unaffected, although parking meters have been covered and aren’t being used. There are grocery stores that are closed down in the area, as well as boarded up. To no avail however, as most residents believe that the stocking up they did was wasted. Many residents did not lose power, and there was an area that had only a five minute power outage. Some parts of the storm were worse than other, with strong winds and up ended property. Videos of debris flying through the air were released during and after the storm, as well as bending trees and swaying power lines. Still, beach sport enthusiasts donned their wet-suits and surfed on the storm waves the next day.There were around thirty beach goers on the beach.

A surfer was interviewed that said he had been anticipating surfing on waves up to ten feet, and using offshore winds to create even better waves. The hopeful surfer was let down, and a large amount of the storm was in actuality not as terrible as it had been made out to be. The danger is not over for areas further up the coast, but the area of south Florida was lucky in many respects. Some surfers don’t actually consider themselves lucky, as they were hoping for better waves. However, other areas of Florida don’t really share their sentiment. Weather.com says nearly one million people are without power, and there is flooding in many areas. One person has been confirmed dead. In St. Augustine, the flooding has covered many of the streets. There is an Emergency Operations Center that is without contact currently in St. Johns county, but it has been confirmed by official sources that 20 people are held at the Casablanca Inn nearby. All in all, many people are suffering much less than anticipated, but the flooding and aftermath of the storm is bringing dangers not entirely anticipated. Volusia County reports many people without power, and the larger area reports the aftermath of the storm has not yet been calculated. There is still danger in many areas of coastal Florida. Many people did not evacuate, and are currently seeking shelter in emergency centers around Florida. Property damage has not nearly been calculated yet, and there is a large number of homes completely covered in water. Elephant Safe Rooms extends our compassion and thoughts to the residents of southern and coastal Florida affected by the storm. We’ve written extensively about safety and ways to prepare yourself in situations like Hurricane Matthew. As the storm makes it’s way up the coast, make sure you take every precaution necessary and then some. The death toll has been low so far in the United States, please help you and your neighbor in order to keep it that way.

We will update on the storm as it makes it’s way up the coast.

North Carolina

Hurricane passed through North Carolina over the weekend, causing flooding at record levels and the death of at least ten people. There was a large amount of rescues, and in Princeville there was some flooding and evacuation. Pat McCrory, NC Governor, stated that 1,500 people were kept in Lumberton after a nearby levee breached. There are people trapped in the area in high places, and the damages have yet to be fully assessed. Several areas in North Carolina that have dams and other levees are being evacuated in case post storm flooding will cause them to break and or fail. North Carolina residents faired decently well, but everything that Governor McCrory said before the storm hit about how serious it was going to be was warranted. At Elephant Safe Rooms we’re worried about the coming days, as flooding can bring danger even after the storm has passed and dissipated.

South Carolina

South Carolina saw three fatalities over the weekend due to Hurricane Matthew. The people were killed by floods that were sweeping away entire areas, bridges were gone, and roads had been covered completely causing accidents and confusion.  Vehicles were said to have been carried for hundreds of yards, and dive teams found many vehicles underwater. The full scope of the damage has yet to be fully assessed, and names have not been released from the deaths. Officials are still warning residents to stay safe and not try to brave the flooded areas for any reason. There are fallen power lines in areas that are currently being cleared, as well as a plethora of other debris.

LAST UPDATED 10/10/16