Helping after the hurricane: Methodist teams respond in Florida after storm Ian

The Category 4 Hurricane decimated portions of the Fort Myers area with 155 mph winds and waves of floodwaters. Its deadly destructive path tore across Florida as the deadliest hurricane to strike the state since the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane.

Infrastructure was so chaotic and affected that it took over a month before the United Methodist Disaster Response was able to receive and sustain out-of-state ERTs. In the meantime, we in South Carolina responded to the 45 mph remnants of Hurricane Ian in South Carolina, making ERT responses from Charleston to Florence, with Charleston and McClellanville receiving the main portions of requested help.

From Nov. 6-13, SC ERT Team Alpha responded to the Fort Myers area, staying at Faith UMC with 28 volunteers, three ERT Disaster Response Trailers and 2 skid steers. We brought with us flood buckets and a variety of supplies and donations for the survivors and church.

We were directed to the worst-hit areas, focusing our efforts mainly on muck — cleaning out of flooded homes that received up to 7 feet of saltwater throughout. We also placed tarps on the damaged roofs of three homes, did some chainsaw work and a lot of skid steer work moving debris.

Up and down most streets were still massive piles of debris, which contained the physical aspects of many homes and lives, including water-logged photos and precious treasured items destroyed by water and mold.

Mold was a major concern and we took all needed precautions for our personal safety and the survivors who worked alongside us in several locations.

Category 1 Hurricane Nichole came ashore near Tampa on Nov. 13, causing us to leave a day earlier than expected, driving through stormy weather.

One flooded house that we worked on was the home of Peter “Pete” Crumpacker located three blocks from the ocean. His home had sustained 6-1/2 feet of saltwater and nothing had been done with it since the hurricane. It was filled with all the family possessions plus furniture, appliances and mold from the floor to the ceiling

Peter, like so many others, had no flood insurance due to the high cost of obtaining it. He had lost a lot but what could be salvaged, including the structure of his home, was in dire jeopardy due to mold and such associated hazards. He needed to get everything out and sprayed soon.

Pete kept flooding us with appreciation for our willingness to help with such a dirty and hazardous undertaking to which we gave all the glory to God. He began to tell how his wife was so overwhelmed with emotion and sorrow that she could not even go back to their home. She was very depressed and had a hard time dealing with the entire disaster, which literally almost took her and Pete’s life!

They had decided to ride out the hurricane, which was almost a fatal mistake. Pete told that as the floodwaters rose in the dark of night, they began to climb onto furniture and then the countertops to stay out of the water. As the flood waters continued to rise, the refrigerator began to float and they eventually had to climb onto it to survive.

Pete took a hatchet and chopped a hole into the attic so they could keep their heads above the water. As he was chopping a hole into the roof, the water began to subside and their lives were spared.

Pete had such a wonderful attitude about him and was always smiling. We commented about his wonderful disposition and he stated, “I am so thankful to Jesus for sparing our lives and realize that the rest is just material things. When life gives you a lemon, make lemonade.”

Team Leader the Rev. Mike Evans tells of a man named Walter Graham, who his team was sent to help. “Walter was flooded out and was in dire straits. A company had charged him $8,000 to remove the furniture out of his home and did not include removing all the cabinets, paneling, sheetrock, insulation, etc. – mucking it out,  which is what we did.

Walter starting crying tears of joy when he found out our services were free. Walter talked of how our ERTs gave him renewed hope amid a seemingly hopeless situation. He kept thanking everyone and we once again directed all the praise and glory to God, who equips us, sustains us and is our Lord and redeemer!” Evans said.

SC ERT Team Bravo responded from Nov. 13-18 with 17 volunteers, two ERT Trailers and one skid steer. Their first stop was at Pete’s house to tear out around two bathrooms and then on to five other muck/clean out of homes, skid steer work and tarping of homes.

Team leader Chuck Marshall said the people here are so devastated and down in a depressed state. We are so thankful to shine the light of Jesus into their areas of darkness and bring God’s hope and love to them. Our teams are working so hard and diligent and I am so proud of them.”

Team Leader the Rev. Stephen Turner said, “Just because it is not still in the main stream news does not mean that everything is back to normal – far from it — for years to come! We need to continue to pray and support the people until it is.”

We were blessed this past year with three new heavy-duty ERT Trailers and additional ERT equipment from generous donations from across our conference, making this long-distance mission possible, as we deployed all three new trailers. We are still in the process of purchasing some needed supplies and would appreciate any further donations, which can be sent to the conference office and made out to UMVIM ERT.

God bless!