I grew up in a small town in South Carolina, less than an hour from Myrtle Beach, which bordered the North Carolina state line. This town is “home” to me and will always be “home” no matter how near or far I am from there. It is the epitome of small town living at it’s best.
My first wedding happened in my parent’s backyard, my childhood home in this town. My children were born in this town. My entire life is wrapped up in this little piece of Earth and I spent 26 years of my life in this town beginning to be the person I am today.
Hurricane Florence has left my little hometown in a state of disaster. Almost the entire town has flooded. Places that previously have never seen water are covered with it. Friends are being evacuated because of the rising water levels.
I grew up in a brick house on Forest Drive in Loris, South Carolina with my two loving parents taking care of me. That house, my childhood home, is currently under water. It was prone to flooding during storms like this, as we often had water setting in the yard, even when I was a child but this massive amount of water is exceeding anything I have ever seen in this town.
My high school is flooded as well. The town’s original high school which still stands has also suffered damage. And so many other places that I love are feeling the aftermath of the storm as well.
The beautiful town of Conway, South Carolina is flooding as the Waccamaw River overflows her banks. Lumberton, North Carolina had a levee fail and much of the area there is under water. The Lumbee River is also exceeding her banks. The Cape Fear river near Fayetteville, North Carolina is expected to crest at record levels. Highway 17 looks like a river around Wilmington, North Carolina.
This same area is just recovering from Hurricane Matthew only to be hit again with these damaging floods following Hurricane Florence. Friends and family are sharing some of the most devastating photos of the area I’ve ever seen. Water covering cars and most of the houses in the area. Roads are washing out and collapsing as cars ride over them. Lives are being lost as well.
The aftermath of a Hurricane is always the hardest. We never know what to expect and I can say in my lifetime I’ve never seen devastation to the area such as this is. Tornadoes were happening all day yesterday. The storm literally just moved out of the coast after sitting over the area for days now.
And as these rains continue to cross the state, more flooding is to be expected as the rivers flow down to the coast, already overflowing their banks. My heart aches for all those we love in this area right now. My hometown is hurting. Please continue to pray for those in the aftermath of this storm. The end is yet to be seen.