Hurricane Michael

On October 10th, Hurricane Michael hit the Florida Panhandle and caused massive destruction. Even though that was 500 miles away from us, there was such a great need for assistance that shortly thereafter our stake president requested that everyone in our stake pick a weekend to go up to help. We had our turn last weekend, and it's an experience we'll never forget. Because of our opportunity to help with cleanup efforts for Hurricane Irma last year (which you can read about here), we had an idea of what to expect, but it was still unique. There's a great difference between a hurricane going across a tiny island and one going inland for quite a distance.

Anyway, here's the story in pictures. After the long drive, which went nice and smoothly, the first order of business was checking in at the command center in Panama City to pick up some assignments and supplies.

Then we set up our tent, grateful that we met our goal to get that done before the sun went down. We weren't exactly happy with the cold weather - about 45° at night - but it was good practice for our trip north for Thanksgiving, and during the day the weather was perfect for working outside. 

We weren't the only ones, and there were even more on Sunday morning.

One reason for picking up the work orders on Friday was so we could avoid the congestion at the church and get an early start on Saturday. A couple of our planned crew members caught the flu just before leaving and had to stay home; we missed them and appreciated our good health, strength and energy just that much more.

Our first assignment was at the home of an older couple who had retired to Florida from Kentucky about four years ago. The husband, who was a former police officer, had a stroke just two years ago. While he was improving, they had just listed their house for sale so they could move back closer to family. They were a bit concerned about what the effects of the hurricane will have on that plan, but they were also hopeful and grateful and very appreciative of our help. It really wasn't much, but we were able to trim a few branches, pick up debris, and haul their broken fence to the curb.

Top - before pictures - the pile of debris, the side yard, and the back fence
Bottom - after pictures

All done with one work order.

Having a clean yard really does lift the spirits!

Our second assignment was even more heart-wrenching. This family lost their roof and the entire side wall of their town home. Most of their neighbors were in the same predicament.

The request was to move the debris from between the buildings. However, we discovered that everything was intertwined, including the electrical box and wiring, and after a few minutes of attempting to disconnect pieces, during which Wayne fell through some of the siding, we decided it was beyond the scope of our capabilities. That was a tough decision.

The next work order was just a few buildings down on the same street. This lady had a giant pine tree fall against her bedroom window. That had already been removed, but there was still some debris in her backyard. It didn't take too long to take care of that, and once again, the home owner - who had lived in the area for 37 years without ever seeing such a storm - was extremely appreciative. I just wish we could have done more.

Left - pieces of the trunk
Right - the stump

More pictures from that street; the piles are being continually growing.

On to the next one! This family lost 4-5 large oak and pine trees, along with some shingles and a window. Fortunately, the insurance had already helped with getting the trees removed, and they were on the schedule for a roof repair on Thanksgiving Day.

In between working at his job and helping others, the husband was trying to do what he could to finish cleaning up their back yard. The storm had also knocked over their fencing, so we helped him with that chore, and also chopped down one additional tree, once again adding to the pile at the curb.

It felt good to reach the end of our list, and even though there was still an hour of daylight, we were pretty beat, so we called it a day, stopping off at the command center to let the chain saw experts know they did a great job.

We also picked up some orders for the next day and decided to check them out that evening. Here's  what we found at the addresses we were assigned. Unfortunately, these homeowners need way more help than we could provide. These tall pine trees snapped at 10-15' were all over the place, and it takes more than a small chain saw and wheelbarrow to remove them.

The next morning Wayne composed a poem:

          Here is the church. Here is the steeple.

          It fell on the ground but didn't hurt any people.

Then we went inside and enjoyed a very spiritual, short and sweet, sacrament meeting. I even got to play the piano, just like I did for our "yellow shirt" sacrament meeting last year. That's a special experience.

Our final assignment turned out to be the perfect one for our small group. This family also lost several large trees in the backyard, and those had already been removed. There were a couple of palms leaning on their house but they were hoping to prop those up and save them.

However, their fence was knocked down. When our bishop went up to help a few weeks ago, he was doing a lot of tree cutting. We figure fences are a lower priority, but it's still an overwhelming job, and we were grateful to be able to help and make things easier for this family.

Before

After

This was their back-door neighbor's house. He said they were inside when the roof blew off. As you can imagine, they're not living there currently.

Whoever decided that sleds are an essential tool for hauling debris deserves genius status. We decided that because they're easier to maneuver over uneven ground, and are easier to empty, they're much better than wheelbarrows.

One more giant pile of fencing. Then it was time to break camp and make the long drive home. The weekend's reminder that we are greatly blessed was a great start to Thanksgiving week.

P.S. Both our son and daughter-in-law had an opportunity to go help with their ward, on different weeks because this was not a place for small boys. They had a much larger group!