WRAL-TV (Raleigh)

Friday October 29, 1999 4:40 a.m. EDT

Floyd's Added Aftermath for Residents: Sleepless Nights, Stressful Days

TARBORO, N.C. (AP) -- Flooding from Hurricane Floyd did more than sweep away possessions and destroy property. Many here say it also carried away peace of mind.

Mary Tyson, whose Princeville home was flooded, said worry has deprived her of the most elemental of comforts.

``Sleep?'' she said. ``You just lay there thinking about how you're going to replace what you've lost.''

``Then you hear somebody is giving away some help, or a little money, and you worry you won't get there in time to get anything,'' she said. ``There's people getting up at 12:30 at night to get to where they're giving away things - sleeping there, so they can try to get a little something. It's pitiful.''

Her husband Joe said his acquaintances have turned testy.

``You just say something, and people want to fight you,'' he said. People are ``under so much stress now they can hardly make it.''

The American Red Cross sent 244 mental health workers to the damaged region, a deployment second in size only to the Oklahoma City bombing. At service centers, counselors are seeing people with anxiety, upset stomachs, illnesses and nightmares.

``These are normal people having a normal reaction to an abnormal situation,'' said Dorothy Corless, a Red Cross mental health worker in eastern North Carolina.

Floyd, which drenched the region with up to 20 inches of rain, was by far the worst of three hurricanes and a tropical weather system that besieged eastern North Carolina in September and October. More than 15,000 homes remain uninhabitable. Recovery is expected to take years.

Counselors say the youngest are hit particularly hard by the loss of all that was familiar.

Ruby Best's children recoil from the rain, associating it with fleeing their home in the dark before the brown waters of the nearby Tar River ruined their Princeville home.

``My daughter says, `Momma, I don't want to go home again,''' Best said. ``I tell her, `Baby, we've got to get a home to go to first.'''

George Burdick has managed to keep calm despite losing his home and cattle, along with a dog. While his Martin County farm was awash in floodwaters, he and his wife spent weeks in shelters and hotels.

With disaster surrounding him, Burdick said he's worried more for others.

``Maybe the full impact of what we lost hasn't hit me yet, but I feel like we're so much better off than other folks,'' he said.

As Burdick talked with Red Cross counselor Gordon Drummond, the eyes of his wife, Mary Kate, filled with tears. ``He won't say it,'' she said of her husband, ``but I'm afraid we're going to lose everything.''

Drummond said work will continue ``to help people get refocused and think about what they can do today.'' But he acknowledged residents have it tough.

``Around every corner, there's another corner,'' he said.

Drummond's center, which serves eight counties, had 3,223 counseling cases in the first five weeks after Floyd. Counselors found that rural residents seemed to suffer more than urban dwellers because the floods wiped out their safety net of neighbors.

``You're at a hotel. I'm in a trailer. Other neighbors are in a shelter,'' Drummond said. ``It just adds to the stress because you're used to being part of a group, and suddenly that support isn't there.''

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), October 29, 1999

Answers

Good God, here we go with Floyd again...

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

The article is an illustration of what can happen when people are suddenly faced with serious disruption in their lives: The End of Their World as They Know It. If--and I stress IF--there are any locally disruptive problems due to Y2K, this experience gives an indication of what might be expected. According to reports, very few local authorities took heed of the forecast for heavy rains associated with Floyd and did not warn their communities. A little caution in advance might have helped soften the harsh blows.

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), October 29, 1999.

"The article is an illustration of what can happen when people are suddenly faced with serious disruption in their lives: The End of Their World as They Know It."

Bullshit, their lives DIDN'T END AS THEY KNEW IT you fear mongering jerk. Their lives were disrupted for a short period. Why do you feel the need to scare people into thinking the end of the world is coming?

Wow, talk about jaded.

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

Thanks for the post Old Git.

I'm interested in people's reaction to the unexpected changes life offers on a grand scale.

Y2K lessons to learn.

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), October 29, 1999.

"I'm interested in people's reaction to the unexpected changes life offers on a grand scale."

For those of you who don't know Diane at all, that means she is interested in people's reaction so long as it is pessimistic. Take this thread for example, You think DJS would have said a polite thank you to a Polly?

Thr truth is out there.

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

@...

people who have lost their homes and/or livelyhoods are experience the end of the world that THEY knew... God forbid something like this happens to you...

Just for grins.. how WOULD you feel if you lost your home and livelyhood and had no idea how you would get a home much less a job...

These hard hit folks will be dealing with this catastrophe for years to come... hardly what I call a "bump"...

TEOTWAWKI means AS WE KNOW IT. It does not mean the end of the world.

So, how would YOU feel?

-- booann (keepthefaith@hold.on), October 29, 1999.

Old Git and Diane,

I admire your restraint. I agree that the hour is too late to waste time arguing with "our colleages on the other side of the aisle". Let them waste time ranting if it makes them feel better.

JJ

-- Jeremiah Jetson (laterthan@uthink.y2k), October 29, 1999.

Valuable post, Old Git. Sent it down to my husband at work.

___@__, your handle says it all.

-- silver ion (___@__.clueless), October 29, 1999.

booann,

You trying to scare me? Wow, what a surprise tactic, I would have never expected something like around here.

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

JJ, first of all, I don;t do it for your sake. There are still people out there undecided and I don't want them hoodwinked like you've become.

But yeah you are right. Ignore me and it's almost like I don't exist at all. Thank God you don't do Y2K remediation work. (You don't do you?).

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

What is it about the Poolianas that compels them to shove their maws where they aren't wanted, to interrupt where they're not invited, and to intrude where they aren't welcome?

Chemical imbalance?

Unresolved childhood conflicts?

Tight knickers?

Or is it just their little way of letting us know exactly what they're made of?

-- Ron Schwarz (rs@clubvb.com.delete.this), October 29, 1999.

From WRAL reports: Forty-seven people were killed. Hundreds of thousands of dead animals and poultry polluted the rivers and coastal waters. Hazardous and toxic materials were released into the flood waters. More than 50,000 homes were damaged or destroyed. Only one percent of homeowners had flood insurance. Over 60,000 victims have registered for help with FEMA. Damages are estimated at $5.3 BILLION. Many roads and bridges are still out. The state may have to add a one percent sales tax to cover the cost. Many families will never recover financially from their losses, let alone psychologically. Rural areas of North Carolina in particular are comprised of very close-knit communities where families have known each other for generation after generation. A significant number of the victims, with no flood insurance to help them, are accepting buy-outs from FEMA and moving to higher locales. A large number of eastern communities have been shattered forever. Some of the smaller hamlets will cease to exist.

This is The End of Their World As They Knew It.

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), October 29, 1999.

@,

No, I'm not trying to scare you... but I assume scared is how you would feel if you lost your home/job since my inquiry apparently threatened you.

It scares me to think about the possibility.. much less have it happen to me... I simply thought you minimized the trauma these victims are enduring and they need our thoughts to be supportive of their situation, not otherwise.

I see you've posted all over this morning with not so many supportive answers. Maybe it's just who you are...

In any event, I've responded to all the bait you have thrown on this one, but I can assure you I will not feed the trolls. Good day.

-- booann (keepthefaith@hold.on), October 29, 1999.

What is it about the Poolianas that compels them to shove their maws where they aren't wanted, to interrupt where they're not invited, and to intrude where they aren't welcome? Chemical imbalance?

Unresolved childhood conflicts?

Tight knickers?

Or is it just their little way of letting us know exactly what they're made of?

-- Ron Schwarz (rs@clubvb.com.delete.this), October 29, 1999.

********************************************************************

No, I'm not trying to scare you... but I assume scared is how you would feel if you lost your home/job since my inquiry apparently threatened you.

It scares me to think about the possibility.. much less have it happen to me... I simply thought you minimized the trauma these victims are enduring and they need our thoughts to be supportive of their situation, not otherwise.

I see you've posted all over this morning with not so many supportive answers. Maybe it's just who you are...

In any event, I've responded to all the bait you have thrown on this one, but I can assure you I will not feed the trolls. Good day.

-- booann (keepthefaith@hold.on), October 29, 1999.

********************************************************************

Again, I have no hope of convincing a lunatic to become sane. But there are still new people (probably more every day) that surf the net looking for answers. I want them to see that just because a hundred Doomers get togther to agree it doesn't mean they are right.

I'll keep posting here and pointing out the obvious, that you guys are driven by FEAR.

On a lighter note, the Y2K HAS caused some problems. The Back Street Boys have accidently received fifteen THOUSAND minutes of fame.

-The Kimmer, WGST AM RADIO

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

Sorry for that repost of the other posts... I was going to respond to them line by line but there wasn't enough to for an intelligent mind to comment on, Sysops feel free to delete the repeats, if ya feel like it.

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

Ron: I vote for "tight knickers" LOL!

-- mar (derigueur2@aol.com), October 29, 1999.

Tight knickers....LOLOLOLOLOL!!!!!!

(Incredible how important this thread has become in the world isn't it).

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

hey no name @:

Why do you keep changing TEOTWAWKI to TEOTW ?

If anyone is fear-mongering, it appears to be you.

-- plonk! (realaddress@hotmail.com), October 29, 1999.

He's probably got a poole hall bet going on whether or not he can rename the neologism without anyone noticing.

In which case, of course, he just lost.

-- Ron Schwarz (rs@clubvb.com.delete.this), October 29, 1999.

In regards to this forum, I say:

"So much insanity, so little thorazine".

And what difference does it make if I change TEOTWAWKI to TEOTW? It's still the same damn thing whether the world ends completly or just in a "certain way". TW has still E'ed.

Believe me, I'm not trying to get anyone to do anything out of FEAR.

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

Somebody said: ... And what difference does it make if I change TEOTWAWKI to TEOTW? It's still the same damn thing whether the world ends completly or just in a "certain way". TW has still E'ed.

I reply:

Your inability to distingush between TEOTWAWKI and TEOTW is astounding to me. If my house burns down, it is TEOTWAIKI, but it is NOT TEOTW. Similar comparisons could be listed, but why bother.

George

-- George Valentine (georgevalentine@usa.net), October 29, 1999.

If your house burns down and it's TEOTWAYKI, then I say you must be the silliest man I have ever met. You seem like a well versed Doomer, don't you have HOUSE INSURANCE???

I would consider a tragedy like that to be a short disruption in your life. But I don't know, I have known some people who couldn't live without "their stuff". Mmaybe you are one of them.

-- (_@_._), October 29, 1999.

booann: Do you like to mudwrestle?

-- King of Spain (madrid@aol.cum), October 29, 1999.

@,

I've tried to restrain myself, but feel I must point out that this thread was about the aftermath of a terrible FLOOD... Almost NONE of these residents had flood insurance... do you?

Respectfully, booann... aka the "lunatic"

-- booann (keepthefaith@hold.on), October 29, 1999.

Thank God --@-- post are short enough to see who the poster is. I notice that he loose bowel syndrom when it comes to posting. I never read a word of @.

-- thinkIcan (thinkIcan@make.it), October 29, 1999.

KOS... actually, I don't mud wrestle, but have been know to mud "bog" a time or two... requires lots of mud, a four wheel drive, and the drive to come out the other side with your truck covered in mud... without being towed out, i.e..... makes you go hmmmmmmmmm!! Don't know exactly what LOL means, but I say LOL, Lots of Love... booann

-- booann (keepthefaith@hold.on), October 29, 1999.

From: Y2K, ` la Carte by Dancr (pic), near Monterey, California

I'll keep posting here and pointing out the obvious, that you guys are driven by FEAR.

Well, doh... Tell us something we don't know. And your point is...? Emotionally strong people can handle justified fear. The insecure will push it away even when they know that it should be attended to. Embrace your fear. It will provide you the motivation you need to protect yourself and those you love. Time is short.

-- Dancr (addy.available@my.webpage), October 29, 1999.

If you ever find yourself in the African Sahara being chased by a lion, or trapped up a tree in Alaska by a pack of wolves I'd say that would be a good time to embrace your fear.

Not when your trying to make logical decisions about the future.

-- (_@_._._), October 29, 1999.