Hurricane Florence
The project path of Hurricane Florence as of noon Sept. 11. (National Weather Service Map)
United Methodists in South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia were evacuating coastal regions threatened by storm surge and preparing for the possibility of severe inland flooding as Hurricane Florence took aim at the eastern coast of the United States.
As of noontime Sept. 11, Hurricane Florence was classed as a Category 4 storm with sustained winds of 130 mph and gusts to 165 mph. The “cone of uncertainty,” or a zone of possible landfall, stretched from Charleston, S.C. through Cape Fear, N.C., and up to the North Carolina-Virginia State Line.
South Carolina’s Gov. Henry McMaster ordered mandatory evacuation for the state’s coastal region, except for three southernmost counties. North Carolina’s Gov. Roy Cooper likewise ordered mandatory evacuations for all the state’s coastal communities and its island region known as the Outer Banks. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam also ordered mandatory evacuations for the most vulnerable coastal regions of his state. All totaled, some 1.25 million people were expected to be affected by the storm.
Worse, National Hurricane Center meteorologists predicted that Florence had the “Harvey-like” potential to stall over inland areas of the Carolinas, bringing catastrophic flooding. Hurricane Harvey in 2017 stalled over the Houston, Texas, area, bringing as much as 50 inches of rain to the region over several days. Florence was expected to weaken somewhat before it made landfall Thursday night through Friday morning, but will still cause disastrous storm surges and high winds.
Indications were that North Carolina would bear the brunt of the storm. “We do know that we’re in the bull's eye,” North Carolina Gov. Cooper was quoted by the Washington Post. On Facebook, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro, N.C., about 70 miles southeast of Raleigh, issued a warning Sept. 11 that it was at "HURCON3," or Hurricane Condition 3, meaning that the base expected to have "devastating winds" within 48 hours.
Of the three United Methodist annual conferences in the storm’s path, South Carolina’s disaster response team provided the most complete preparation instructions on its website. The following release, which contains information useful for any churches facing dangerous weather conditions, was posted Sept. 11:
Disaster Response and Early Response Team leaders for the South Carolina Conference continue to plan how the conference will respond.
Churches along the coast are urged to go over their hurricane preparation list, double-check insurance coverages, and make sure they know the most current evacuation routes. Now is the time to make sure you are prepared.
Gather your staff and review your disaster plan today. No disaster plan? Put that at the top of your to-do list.
What churches/residents should do now
If you are in an area in which an evacuation order is in place, please evacuate. Once the storm begins, emergency crews will be limited in their ability to respond to rescue calls, should the need arise.
If you have a disaster plan, make sure everyone has a printed copy to take home. An electronic version may be useless if you lose power.
Make sure staff, volunteer, and board contact lists are up to date. Determine how you will communicate with one another before, during, and after the storm.
Make sure your insurance information is readily available.
If you don’t already have up-to-date images (photographic/video) of your church’s facility’s exterior and interior, including storage areas, now’s the time to take them. Being able to illustrate how your buildings looked before damage will be helpful if the need arises to pursue recovery financing.
Back up electronic records and store the back-ups off-site or in the cloud.
Secure outdoor furniture, bike racks, book drops, etc. – anything that can become a projectile in strong winds.
Move book, file and photo collections that are in areas vulnerable to flooding – i.e., the floor, the basement – or susceptible to rain – near windows or under roofs.
Know the location and shut-off procedures for water, electricity, and gas.
Review individual or family plans. You’ll feel better attending to your church knowing that your loved ones are safe.
For tips on what to do before, during, and after a hurricane, go to ready.gov/hurricanes.
Download FEMA fact sheets “After the Flood: Advice for Salvaging Damaged Family Treasures” and “Salvaging Water-Damaged Family Valuables and Heirlooms.”
Familiarize yourself with FEMA’s disaster declaration process, in case one is declared for South Carolina.
Make sure you have contact information for your district superintendent and district disaster response coordinator.
What churches should do after the storm
Once it is safe to do so, please assess your church property, its neighborhood and surrounding community and report damages to your district disaster response coordinator. If your district does not have a disaster response coordinator, report damages to your district office.
Check on anyone in your church/neighborhood who you know stayed behind despite the evacuation order.
Insight Editor Cynthia B. Astle contributed to this report.