Weeks after Hurricane Florence soaked the Carolinas, standing water and mosquitoes are a lingering problem. And as the nation’s news cycle moves on to other topics, North Carolina residents are realizing that recovery is a long process.
The North Carolina legislature approved $56 million for recovery assistance for local communities — a sum lawmakers described as just a down payment on what could end up being a much more expensive proposition. The Wilmington Star-News had this report (see: “NC lawmakers approve $56.6M in Florence relief,” by Paul Wolverton): “‘It’s a start,’ said Democratic Sen. Don Davis of Greenville. ‘And I think it’s a great start.’ Sen. Wesley Meredith, a Fayetteville Republican, said the legislature’s intent is to get the state on a path to recovery. Several lawmakers say they expect North Carolina will spend ultimately more on the Florence recovery than it did on Hurricane Matthew in 2016.”
Most flooded homeowners have no flood insurance. TV station CBS 17 reported: “Some Fayetteville homeowners are now stuck paying for thousands of dollars in Florence flood damage. In the Cedar Falls subdivision, homeowners aren’t required to have flood insurance. According to FEMA flood maps it’s not in a high-risk flood zone.” (See: “Fayetteville homeowners without flood insurance stuck paying thousands after Florence”).
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has money to buy out houses in flood-prone areas, but those buyouts tend to be few in number and slow in coming, typically occurring years after a disaster and involving a small fraction of the flooded dwellings. “Horry County homeowners hoping the government will purchase their flood-prone properties in the wake of Hurricane Florence are in for a lengthy wait, if the option ever becomes available,” the Myrtle Beach Sun News reported (see: “Hoping the government will buy your flood-prone home? The wait could be years,” by David Weissman).
And for some Carolina communities, Hurricane Florence is their second storm in two years — and a blow that they may not get over. Reuters has this report (see: “North Carolina town may never fully recover from double whammy of storms,” by Randall Hill): “Experts say such hamlets and towns face permanent changes, with fewer residents, fewer businesses and fewer prospects of returning to the way things were just a generation ago. Older residents whose roots run deep and those too poor to leave will soon likely make up the bulk of the population. Those who can will leave, but others will do their best to rebuild.”
