Flood brings out the best and worst in people
Published October 14, 2016
Editorial by The Greenville Daily Reflector, October 13, 2016.
Those who might have had some uncertainty about the warnings that the Tar River would crest at near-record levels have had those doubts erased. The river is forecast to reach 26 to 27 feet. It crested near 30 feet in 1999 after Hurricane Floyd. Now is the time to remember that property can be replaced, but lives cannot.
By now, a large swath of land north of the Tar and a smaller section south of the river should be uninhabited except for emergency personnel. The official warnings and evacuation orders were not issued on a whim and should not be ignored on a whim, especially to navigate a way back home to check on property or gather up a few more belongings. Instead, wait for officials to issue clearance before entering an evacuation zone. Foolish excursions to sightsee along the water’s edge can be deadly.
If the lessons of Floyd are heeded, information, preparation and cooperation combined with common sense will keep a natural disaster from becoming a man-made one. As waters rise in affected areas, the people and leadership of Greenville and Pitt County have to rise higher, think outside the box and prepare the community for a quick recovery. Rest assured there are many individuals and organizations, public and private, working toward that goal. A pat on the back is already earned by GUC for being prepared and keeping power going so far.
Emergency shelters play an important role right now. Shelters were open at Wellcome Middle School in north Greenville, E.B. Aycock Middle School in central Greenville, at Hope Middle School in southern Pitt County and at North Pitt High School. There, people forced to evacuate the floods will find rest, food, comfort and companionship with others facing the same challenges. These are neighbors, coworkers and, hopefully, new friends who share a feeling of uncertainty and concern for what tomorrow may bring.
Those fortunate enough to be able to stay in their own homes have not forgotten neighbors who have had to abandon theirs. A number of area churches, schools and civic organizations mobilized volunteers to help and care for evacuees.
Barry Porter, regional chief executive officer of the Red Cross in Eastern NC, said, “We are relying on the kindness of the community to sign up to volunteer. This community needs us to rally around them.”
That’s what this community does best.
Everyone wants life in the east to return to normal as quickly as possible with minimal damage. With some creative thinking and cooperative leadership to keep people healthy, get schoolchildren and college students back into class as soon as conditions allow and open commerce routes to return people to work, the people of eastern North Carolina can show what “Pirate Nation” actually means.
