[JSR] Hurricane Florence Hits the Southeast

Unfortunately, many of us have seen and heard about the most recent natural disaster: Hurricane Florence. Even weeks after the hurricane dissipated on September 19, people are still left dazed and vulnerable in its wake.

The wave first started in West Africa as a tropical wave or elongated area of low air pressure in late August. It slowly moved its way across the Atlantic Ocean, getting bigger and hitting Cape Verde and Bermuda first. In early September, governors of North and South Carolina, Maryland, and the District of Columbia declared a state of emergency and began evacuations.

When Hurricane Florence did hit, winds were at a high of 90 mph and the storm dumped as much as 30 inches of rain in other places, reaching the Category 4 level of the Saffir-Simpson scale.

Now, there have been at least 42 deaths attributed to the hurricane, not including millions of animals. More than 1,500 people have been left homeless and in shelters. Around $40 billion in damage has been calculated, making Hurricane Florence the 6th costliest tropical cyclone on record.

When asked to share any thoughts with JSR, Valencia High School senior John Chu answered, “I feel really sad about what happened recently in North Carolina. But I won’t go as far to say that it didn’t happen. Hurricanes are natural events, there’s no way we can stop them from happening. But we can do our best to prepare for such disasters and I feel that we did that for Hurricane Florence. But regardless, there’s a lot of people who are suffering and I pray for them all.”

Although Florence only hit the Southeastern coast of the U.S., the entire country reaches out and hopes for the best to all those who suffered from the disaster.