I went to North Carolina to see the Hurricane damage for myself.
However bad you think things are — they are worse 🧵🧵🧵
However bad you think things are — they are worse 🧵🧵🧵
We started in Swannanoa, a small town 30 minutes outside Asheville. Much of the main drag is gone, while entire residential streets have been swept away.
It felt like a movie set.
It felt like a movie set.
It’s important to understand that the vast majority of homes in town were not considered to be in a flood zone, meaning most have no flood insurance.
Nearly every local I spoke to said they never even considered that water could get anywhere near their homes.
Nearly every local I spoke to said they never even considered that water could get anywhere near their homes.
I met a man named Sunny who was trapped for days with his pregnant wife and two children.
He told me about the sounds of his neighbor’s screams as the water overtook their roofs — eight people from his street are still missing.
He told me about the sounds of his neighbor’s screams as the water overtook their roofs — eight people from his street are still missing.
In the pitch black, Sunny could hear the boom of shipping containers floating down the river tearing into houses all around him.
In the days after the storm, with little food or water, cut off from the outside world, Sunny lost so much weight that his wedding ring fell off his finger.
Sunny tells me he received $750 from FEMA which “will barely cover a week at the worst motel in town.”
“I haven’t felt any relief from the government. This is what we’re gonna get if we keep voting for the same pricks. Obviously Trump is the only person capable of standing up to this.”
“I haven’t felt any relief from the government. This is what we’re gonna get if we keep voting for the same pricks. Obviously Trump is the only person capable of standing up to this.”
This is Lynn, the embodiment of resilience and optimism.
Tears of joy fill her eyes as she tells me her water finally came back on the day before and she gets to take a hot bath.
Tears of joy fill her eyes as she tells me her water finally came back on the day before and she gets to take a hot bath.
When federal resources were slow to arrive, veterans from around the country stepped up to serve.
Leading the way is Adam Smith from @SavageFreedoms.
Leading the way is Adam Smith from @SavageFreedoms.
This is the 'Redneck Air Force', a group of Special Forces veterans working with volunteers to reach areas cut off from the outside world.
For weeks, volunteers with Savage Freedoms have worked around the clock to search for survivors and deliver aid.
They’ve also got cadaver dog teams to search for bodies in areas buried by landslides.
They’ve also got cadaver dog teams to search for bodies in areas buried by landslides.
Throughout the afternoon, veterans from around the country show up.
One man from Missouri appears with nothing but a knapsack, saying “I heard you guys could use some help.”
One man from Missouri appears with nothing but a knapsack, saying “I heard you guys could use some help.”
Jason Buchanan is a relief worker who’s been to 100 disaster zones — he told me nothing compares to the devastation here in Western Carolina.
While surveying the damage, we meet Larry, an elderly Marine veteran who was trapped for five days without food or water.
Larry had no car and needed a ride to the VA Hospital outside town. The drive took twice as long as usual due to the number of road closures.
Larry had no car and needed a ride to the VA Hospital outside town. The drive took twice as long as usual due to the number of road closures.
One thing I heard over and over from relief workers is that it will take years, not months, to recover from this storm.
The suffering of these people cannot be forgotten.
They still need our help and we can not rely on the Federal Government alone to provide it.
They still need our help and we can not rely on the Federal Government alone to provide it.
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