We have all been touched in some way by Hurricane Helene. From people we know that live in the affected areas to those participating in relief efforts, we are all connected to this disaster in some way. Florida is a seasoned veteran to hurricanes and the people who live there are experienced in what to brace for and what to do after a storm, but the damage to the Florida coast from Helene was not done by the eye, but by the rain, along with 100 mph winds, and a storm surge that hit the St. Petersburg area affecting Treasure Island, Sunset Beach, St. Pete Beach, Shore Acres and Tanglewood Estates the hardest. Washing up sand like snowdrifts in a blizzard, the damage was extensive and changed the landscape in some places forever.
Life in the Appalachian and Smokey Mountains in Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina will never be the same as it was on September 26, 2024. The people in the Tennessee and North Carolina mountains were not prepared and could never have imagined the raging water that would rush through their communities. Hurricanes usually lose steam, especially this far inland, but this one did not – and it was huge. Helene was 420 miles wide, nearly as wide as the state of Nebraska, and hit Florida and continued inland to Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina.
Herds of bucket trucks and linemen sent to restore power can be seen from all over the country, and some were sent down from Canada, as well. Our friend Jacob Murray, who gave us the idea to write about all this, said that trucks, from hot shots to oversize, are going to be needed for a very long time. At the time, Jacob was hooked to a trailer with sinks, soap, water and paper towels headed to a 500 person turn-key base camp in Mills Spring, NC – an equestrian center turned into a staging area for relief trailers of all kinds. These trailers were set up to accommodate the needs of the rescue workers and volunteers and included bathrooms, showers, laundry, sleeping trailers, and a kitchen to make meals for the first responders and volunteers.
The damage that resulted from the deluge of water and wind from Helene will take years to rebuild. It is going to take heavy equipment to take apart and clean up what is left of a lifetime of work and memories for so many in these mountains, along with dump trucks and trailers to haul it all away. Bridges in many areas of the mountains were washed out leaving no way in or out for many people. Helicopters, ATVs, boats and even pack mules were the only way to get supplies to people who desperately needed them. In one place, they used ingenuity and two flatbed trailers to build a temporary bridge to get supplies to people who had no other access.
It could not have been any more personal for our friend Charles “Lefty” Bunde from Elizabethton, TN. At 7:30 AM on September 27th, the Hampton Fire Department knocked on his and his neighbor’s doors and told them they had 15 minutes to get out because the water was coming. It was rising a foot and a half every 10 minutes. Charles was able to grab some clothes and some important papers and personal things, but that was it. Moving to higher ground on the other side of the river that flows near their homes, they sat and watched cars, motor homes and houses floating down the swollen river. Lefty even watched his shed and equipment float away.
Their only road in and out was washed out. It has since had rock dumped in the holes and leveled out as best they could, so they essentially have a gravel road – and probably will for at least a year – until the Tennessee DOT will be able to get it repaired. Lefty’s insurance company told him that he doesn’t live in a floodplain (his ground was 3’ above it), so they denied his claim. He told us he was lucky his house had been built in 1936 and the foundation went three feet into the ground and the floor joists were made with true 3×6 wood. Had this not been the case, his house would have floated down the river, too.
He also told us a story about a trucker who had parked in Rosedale, waiting to deliver his load. The driver woke up feeling cold water, and opened his curtain to find the cab was filled with water. He had no choice but to stay, because the water around him was so swift, he would have drowned had he got out. The truck, trailer, and load were a total loss, but the driver survived.
We would like to tell you about our friend Lefty. His nickname comes from the fact his right arm is gone. When he was 14 years old, he was the victim of a hit and run accident, but that did not stop him from getting his CDL when he was 18 years old. Over the next 25 years, he enjoyed driving trucks, operating heavy equipment, and even drove a tow truck for a few years. But, after driving for 25 years, they changed the rules for amputees a few years ago, which made it harder for him to keep his CDL, so he no longer drives. And if all that is not enough, he is currently battling skin cancer. But there is no pity party from him, only determination to beat whatever life throws at him, with the motto, “God has a purpose for me being here.” Amen.
We have friends and so many other people across the country pitching in and collecting loads of supplies and hauling them down to the affected areas. When a disaster strikes, Mickey Gwillim of Carlinville, IL is always one of the first to fill a trailer with donations and take it wherever it needs to be. Pastor Gary Sheets of the Blessing of the Trucks and Pastor at the Middlebury Church of the Nazarene is working with Pastor Scott Thompson and the University Parkway Baptist Church in Johnson City, TN, collecting drinking water to deliver to the affected areas (one load has already been delivered). Our friend and fellow 10-4 contributor Trevor Hardwick, in conjunction with his church and help from his friend and our past 10-4 cover trucker Gus Hulstein, are also filling a trailer with supplies to deliver.
Individuals, churches, and various organizations across the country are collecting loads of donations to send to people and families that have lost so much or, in many cases, everything they own. They are working off lists of what people need besides water, food and medicine. Now that it’s getting colder, blankets, warm clothes, and outerwear have become a higher priority. It makes me proud as an American to see people everywhere stepping up and giving whatever they can. We’ve heard and read so many stories of people who have been affected themselves, telling people that were bringing them supplies, to give them to someone else who needs them more than they do. That’s pretty awesome.
Our friends Rick and Linda Widdle took a load to North Carolina, and before they got there, he couldn’t believe people were turning away donations. But, when they got there, they totally understood. Parking lots by churches and other types of businesses where stacked high with cases of water and other supplies. Many places where the donations are going have no room to put things, because they are not set up for this kind of large-scale operation. But it’s not keeping them from doing the best they can, putting together supplies, and using any means available to get them to the people in isolated areas. Now there are warehouses being used as hubs for donations, and this will make it easier to store, separate, and put together what people need most.
Then, if all that devastation wasn’t enough, just two weeks after Helene roared across Florida and the southeast, Hurricane Milton made landfall at Siesta Key as a Category 3, again hitting the Tampa and St. Petersburg areas, and dumping more than 18 inches of rain. They are saying this was a 1 in a 1000 year event. Streets were turned into rivers, filling houses and businesses with water, while the wicked winds tore buildings apart. Those winds ripped the roof off Tropicana Field, which was set to be a makeshift shelter for the first responders. The storm also collapsed a tall crane into an office building, leaving a gaping hole in the 46-story building.
In addition to the rain, wind, and storm surge, Milton also created a record-breaking number of tornadoes across the state. The east side of Florida was hit especially hard, in places like Vero Beach, Ft. Pierce, and Port St. Lucie, where they were braced for a hurricane, not the tornadoes it spawned. Many of these were F3 tornadoes like the ones seen in Tornado Alley on the plains.
Mother Nature has changed lives before, and she will do it again. But, in the aftermath of all her destruction, we see how people come together to help those in need. New friendships are made, and men and women will keep working together to rebuild what once was. Our prayers go out to everyone that have lost loved ones, pets, and have been affected by these record-breaking storms. There will be continued need for years to come on the long road these people have to recover and rebuild – and most of that relief will come via our friends and fellow drivers and their trucks, once again proving just how important and vital we truckers really are.
