Hurricane Helene swept through our town extremely unexpectedly, and my area was only notified of the storm 60 hours before landfall. I am grateful to report that all staff in impacted areas are safe. The most problematic aspect of the storm for my region was the storm surge, as water levels rose over 6 feet in an extremely short period of time, causing every body of water connected to the Gulf of Mexico to overflow. Such an event has not happened in over 100 years when the population was a fraction of what it is now, so naturally, the infrastructure here was not prepared to handle such a catastrophe. My thoughts and prayers are with the thousands of people who lost everything.
The estimated economic impact is unknown. AccuWeather believes the figure is around $160 billion but that is simply from the initial impact. I can tell you right now that it will take many months for the Tampa Bay Area to recover. Over 3 million homes and businesses lost power across Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, and even Virginia. Millions are still without power at the time of this writing. The entire state of Florida is dependent upon the hospitality sector, and thousands are now out of work. Countless small businesses simply will not walk away from this tragedy.
My area looks like a post-apocalyptic horror film. The beach areas have been utterly wiped out; the businesses and restaurants that were once there simply no longer exist. Areas that were not in traditional flood zones experienced water damage and countless homes and businesses are simply uninhabitable. If you dare to drive around as half the traffic lights are down, you will see hundreds of homes with all of their furniture and possessions on the front lawn as nothing could be saved. Those living on barrier islands were trapped in their homes without power or water for days.
Individuals were taking out boats to conduct their own rescue missions throughout the area. I will say there has been a strong sense of community as everyone is coming together to rebuild. All the divisiveness prior vanished for a brief moment as people saw one another as neighbors in need, and there was an outpouring of compassion that is rarely seen in today’s society.
The economic impact truly cannot be calculated at this time, but the devastation has been massive. Over 100 people have lost their lives, and search and rescue missions remain ongoing. We greatly thank those of you who took the time to write in and offer condolences and prayers. The AE website will be back up and running as soon as possible.