What would you do if your town gets hit by a hurricane? Well right now that’s what the people living in Asheville North Carolina have to deal with. The aftermath of the hurricane has left many buildings in shambles leaving barely any places safe from the weather. The hurricane did not only destroy houses it all flooded most of the town leaving civilians trapped in buildings or on high ground. Right now the flooding has stopped rising but it’s still a huge danger to go across as the currents are still extremely strong and can easily sweep someone away with it, including with all the debris and chemicals in the water. The floods also bring along another danger: mudslides that can easily make someone fall into the water and get swept away if they aren’t careful.
But just because of all of these dangers doesn’t mean there isn’t any hope for civilians trapped in their buildings. There are a few trained rafters that are part of the swift-water rescue team, risking their lives to save their neighbors and strangers trapped from the floods. A few of the rafters are Brothers Jim, Mike, and Mitch Hampton, they are working nonstop to save as many lives as possible before it’s too late for them. They are constantly getting distress calls from survivors and are constantly moving, never able to catch a break as they’re always looking to find someone who needs help but just can’t call for it. Jim Hampton told reporters that the hardest part was staying awake and aware to help others “Adrenaline is a wild thing and, cortisol and, you know, you’re just amped, and you can’t sleep, you almost have to crash out from exhaustion, and then you’re doing it again the next day.”
The survivors that have been rescued are mostly refusing to leave as they are either staying waiting to see if their friends or family survived or they aren’t leaving as they don’t want to lose their property that’s been passed down for ages. Luckily they are getting funded by the government and getting help from nearby towns willing to donate and bring food for the survivors. There is currently a funding plan called Flood Mitigation Grants 2022 which currently has 15 million dollars for reimbursements and funding. There’s many ways you are able to donate money to help provide support to the civilians that are currently trapped on their own. The funds are being used to reach areas with helicopters that are completely surrounded by water that hasn’t been reached by first responders to provide food and water to the survivors there. Even though as of now the government is able to reach more areas on foot there are still people trapped and need desperate help. With all that’s been said the storm has broken many peoples hope and souls taking several lives with in a few days, may we wish them luck and hope no one else gets injured.
