Wilmington, NC
In North Carolina we put over 25 volunteers to work for 5 weeks rescuing families immediately after Hurricane Florence, helping clear downed trees and debris, tarping roofs, mucking and gutting flooded homes, and helping with mold abatement. We’ve logged over 2400 hours and saved residents of North Carolina well over $360,000.During the first few days following landfall of Hurricane Florence, our Phase 1 team was able to assist with over 100 rescues. Our team was able to get in early, so we were the only relief team in Wilmington other than the Cajun Navy as water levels rose and roadways became inaccessible. Our team worked around the clock for nearly 48 hours as we helped evacuate residents and rescue families from their home via boat.Water levels in Wilmington, NC and the surrounding area continued to rise for over a week. In some instances, water filled homes with over 4 feet of water for nearly two weeks. Unfortunately, many of those homes will be a complete loss. But for many others, we are able to help them start the recovery process by clearing their furniture and homes’ contents and begin mucking out the water logged carpet, sheet rock, insulation, cabinets, etc.
Thank you to Lowe’s, DPLS, and Chronic Tacos for supporting this mission!
Diane’s Story
Diane is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer and her husband, Buster, just recently had back surgery. The couple heeded warnings for Hurricane Florence and made all of the necessary arrangements they could afford. But when the water started pouring into their home late Friday night, they had no choice but to call for rescue. That’s when they first met ROWW. We picked them up via boat and transported them to safety where they could wait out the storm. When the water levels finally subsided and they could return home, what they found was their entire life’s contents destroyed.
ROWW came back a couple days later to find Diane and Buster at a complete loss of even where to begin. By now, Diane had missed two rounds of her chemo and Buster isn’t able to lift or move heavy objects because of his back surgery. Our team went straight to work clearing the home of all waterlogged furniture, soaked carpet and drywall, and moved anything that could be saved to start drying out. With each step of the process, we could see a little bit of the weight lifted from their shoulders as Diane and Buster began to gain hope that recovery here is possible.
Days after the muck and gut was completed, we got a call from Diane. They can’t begin to rebuild because of the potential for mold regrowth and they have to get the whole home sprayed. Especially with their health conditions, mold abatement is critical. They received a quote for nearly $2000 to have their home sprayed, which was totally out of question for the couple. With no insurance, failing health, and the loss of everything they’ve owned, there was no way they could afford the service. So ROWW came back. With the generous support of Lowe’s we were able to complete mold abatement and get Diane and Buster’s home to a safe rebuilding condition.
“Ya’ll didn’t have to come back here to help me, but you did… I can’t find any other words than you have been angels to us.”
