On Friday, the storm surge knocked out the power for a half-million homes and businesses as it barreled into the East Coast. For thousands of people who didn’t have the means or opportunity to flee, shelters offer a welcome respite ― if they aren’t full.
North Carolina has approximately 12,000 evacuees staying at 126 shelters across the state, CBS reports. One mega-shelter with the capacity to house 1,000 people was already 75 percent full by Thursday morning, according to the Citizen-Times.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper encouraged those in the path of the storm to take immediate action.
“Don’t relax. Don’t get complacent,” he’d said Thursday morning.
A man using a respiratory machine sits in a shelter run by the Red Cross in Grantsboro, North Carolina, on Sept. 13, 2018. (Photo: Eduardo Munoz / Reuters)
In South Carolina, a shelter at Goose Creek High School in Charleston County was similarly full by Thursday night. Those at the shelter ― primarily the homeless and poor ― described a lack of bedding and low-quality food, the Post and Courier reported.
Currently, South Carolina has 61 shelters in place and nearly 5,000 residents who have sought shelter.
Cuthbert Langley, a spokesperson for the American Red Cross in South Carolina, told HuffPost that the organization has more than 1,500 disaster response volunteers spread across North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.
“We want people to know they have a place, have a roof over their heads,” Langley said. “We’re working with our partners to provide food, water and snacks. We’re really just here to provide an escape from the storm. We’re all gonna get through this together.”
He stressed that people needed to “put a plan in action” and evacuate or seek shelter immediately.
“This is a dangerous storm and it’s expected to bring a lot of weather-related issues to the state,” he said. “People need to heed evacuation warnings and leave their homes.”
A volunteer from the Civilian Crisis Response Team carries a child out of the floodwaters in James City on Friday.
Rescue personnel remove a man from a home that a large tree fell on that had three people trapped after Hurricane Florence hit the area on Friday.
A father and daughter learn that friends were injured and later died when a tree fell on their house during landfall of Hurricane Florence in Wilmington, North Carolina on Friday.
A fallen tree is shown after it crashed through the home where a woman and her baby were killed in Wilmington, North Carolina on Friday.
High winds and water surround a house as Hurricane Florence hits Swansboro, North Carolina on Friday.
Russ Lewis covers his eyes from a gust of wind and a blast of sand as Hurricane Florence approaches Myrtle Beach on Friday.
People survey the damage caused by Hurricane Florence on Front Street in downtown New Bern, North Carolina on Friday.
A fallen tree lies atop the crushed roof of a fast food restaurant after the arrival of Hurricane Florence in Wilmington, North Carolina on Friday.
High winds and water surround buildings as Hurricane Florence hits Front Street in downtown Swansboro, North Carolina on Friday.
A view looking east down Fifth Street at the flooded downtown area in Washington, North Carolina on Friday.
Residents at Trent Court Apartments wait out the weather as rising waters get closer to their doors in New Bern on Thursday.
A tree uprooted by strong winds lies across a street in Wilmington, North Carolina on Friday.
The roof of a gas station is destroyed from strong winds as Hurricane Florence passes over in Wilmington, North Carolina on Friday.
Vehicles drive through water from the White Oak River flooding Highway 24 as Hurricane Florence hit Swansboro, North Carolina on Friday.
A motorist navigates away from a fallen tree blocking a road after the arrival of Hurricane Florence in Wilmington, North Carolina on Friday.
A car is destroyed from falling bricks as Hurricane Florence passes over Wilmington, North Carolina on Friday.
Flood waters rise up from the Neuse River in New Bern, North Carolina on Friday.
Volunteers from the Civilian Crisis Response Team help rescue three children from their flooded home in James City on Friday.
Waves slam the Oceana Pier and Pier House Restaurant in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, on Thursday.
Men pack their belongings after evacuating their house after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded their street during Hurricane Florence in New Bern, North Carolina, on Thursday.
A pedestrian crosses the street during the heavy rain of outer bands of Hurricane Florence in New Bern on Thursday.
High winds and storm surge from Hurricane Florence hits Swansboro on Friday.
Winds from Hurricane Florence damaged an awning in Myrtle Beach on Friday.
Rescue workers from Township No. 7 Fire Department and volunteers from the Civilian Crisis Response Team use a truck to move people rescued from their flooded homes during Hurricane Florence in James City on Friday.
Ocean water rushes down Cape Hatteras Pier Drive in Frisco, North Carolina, as the effects of Hurricane Florence reach the area on Thursday.
Michael Nelson floats in a boat made from a metal tub and fishing floats after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded his street in New Bern on Thursday.
The outer bands of Hurricane Florence led to flooding in New Bern on Thursday. The full hurricane is expected to arrive on Friday.
Students Samantha Levine, Megan Boles, Aaron Newns, Dana Pawlowski and Isaiah Goham, of East Carolina University's Coastal Storms class, use anemometers to measure wind speeds at Union Point Park in New Bern on Thursday.
Cars go through a flooded street during the heavy rain of outer bands of Hurricane Florence in New Bern on Thursday.
The outer bands of Hurricane Florence hit New Bern on Thursday.
The flooded Union Point Park Complex in New Bern on Thursday.
Ocean water breaches the dune line and rushes down Highway 12 in Frisco on Thursday.
Heavy rain floods a street as the outer bands of Hurricane Florence hit New Bern on Thursday.
A U.S. Army member walks near the flooded Union Point Park Complex as Hurricane Florence comes ashore in New Bern on Thursday.
Water rolls up Atlantic Beach as the outer edges of Hurricane Florence begin to affect the coast on Thursday.
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