Power

When one of my hurricane-weary XTwitter pals started sending me reports about Helene’s path I thought to myself we need the rain. We had been in drought conditions for some time and the garden was taking a beating despite all of our watering efforts. A few days later as most around me were completely oblivious, my Twitter pal sent posts from all over social media talking about the concern for our region. When I looked at local weather though it did not seem that bad. We had a freak windstorm earlier in the year that had higher winds than were forecasted. For Friday it actually said “light rain.” Then someone sent me this from the National Weather Service:

For the National Weather Service to use the word “catastrophic” I knew there was trouble ahead. I’m a bit of a weather geek. Aided by advice from all of my Florida friends, I spent most of Thursday getting prepared: water, flashlights, batteries, candles, canned food, ice, Red Cross walkie-talkie weather radios. I visited several stores looking for just the right generator, but I decided to wait as I didn’t want to make a rushed decision and wasn’t sure how we would hook up the well (now I know).

What I found very shocking about that day was how deserted all the stores were. I had imagined it would look like the day-before-a-snowstorm scene…around here that is absolute chaos and madness. When I talked to the folks at Lowe’s and Harbor Freight they did not seem concerned, and when I said I wanted the generator for that night and the weekend they looked at me with a blank stare.

We get a lot of rain and storms in this area so if you aren’t a “doomer” like me many probably looked at those same weather reports and thought nothing of it. I shared the information with as many as I could and was very worried…mainly for Asheville. I really thought we would be ok, or if anything power would be out for a day like it was in the last snowstorm.

We lost power at 12pm on Friday. It did not get restored until late Tuesday night. We lost cell service late Friday night which was not restored until Monday night. The farm is on the edge of Washington and Carter County. Carter County got hit much worse than Washington county. By some weird luck I have been at or near ground zero of many disasters in my lifetime which include being in Memphis when Katrina hit. A lot of the responders staged in Memphis, and we got a ton of refugees. I remember looking down I-55 which was deserted on the Northbound side, but on the Southbound side there were miles and miles of responders heading to New Orleans. The consensus back then was that they arrived late and did a really crappy job.

I expected we would at least get that response, but as each day passed, I just was not seeing it. I saw people saying it was political and treated that with suspicion…ineptitude is typically the culprit. On Day 3 as I heard more and more truly horrifying stories from lineman about stranded folks in the mountains, I wrestled with leaving. I have an 11-year-old and a 71-year-old in my care. I felt a low-level anxiety that I cannot explain as I tried to decide what to do. When they opened the city schools (not county) on Monday, the decision became harder. It is Homecoming Week, and my niece is a cheerleader. I was running the roads from hotspot to hotspot (very few) trying to coordinate meals, work and places for my niece to stay with family who had power. She had become really scared the first night as lack of power has a sound that is very disconcerting. What I absolutely was not seeing were the first responders I expected and the additional linemen. We are 59 miles west of Asheville; 10 miles north of Unicoi where 50+ people were rescued from the roof and 6 people died in a plastics factory because they were not allowed to leave; 13 miles east from Jonesborough where they showed houses, cars and coffins floating down the river and adjacent to Elizabethton where they experienced severe flooding and power outages. Johnson City had plenty of downed trees (like the one below that took my power) and car damage, but we were relatively unscathed.

We are also the closest real civilization to many small towns between Asheville and Johnson City and between Knoxville and Johnson City. People come in from the mountains for shopping, etc. We should be a primary staging ground for response. Even if the highway is closed, responders would use this as a base. The Red Cross and other relief orgs are doing so, but their presence also feels small compared to what I saw with Sandy for instance in PA.

By Day 4 - after seeing a homeless man with his two dogs walking down my road which is off the beaten path and hearing from the local gas station that they had run out of gas and were told if it happened again pumps would be shut down and available for first responders only - I gave the situation until Wednesday before we left for Knoxville…Homecoming be damned. Tuesday night power was restored. Most of this area is under a boil water advisory (if they have water at all), but because we have a well we are good there.

As I write this, I can hear military helicopters likely patrolling the area as the President visits for his aerial tour (written Wednesday). I should have been hearing these since Day 1. I’ve shared this on XTwitter, but the numbers absolutely do not lie. By the 7th day of Katrina, the following were deployed according to the Department of Homeland Security:

After Biden’s visit yesterday, he deployed 1,000 additional troops which put us at 7,500 compared to 22,000 National Guard and 4,000 U.S. Coast Guard which were deployed for Katrina. This disaster is larger in size and scope. For scale, look at this aerial photo of power outages after landfall:

The stories we are hearing of people being arrested who tried to hike in or fly in to save people and people being turned away who are trying to help are galling. The level of helplessness in these situations is difficult to describe. The lack of national media attention until very recently was hard to understand. However, they have now showed up with their watered-down versions of what is transpiring in the region. NPR just released a hit piece calling XTwitter trash for disseminating propaganda. If it hadn’t been for XTwitter, I would be completely unaware of the situation here. Of course we must be aware of the fog of war and how these stories can get overblown, but the lack of response is unfathomable to me. Whatever is going on does not add up…not by a long shot.

On Tuesday, two of my followers FelixForbis and Future of France contacted me about fundraising efforts and money they wanted to deploy. Many these days do not trust our relief organizations with good reason. I have worked in several nonprofits and the money never goes where you think. Often most of the money spent is to get more money to keep the party going. I’m so thankful for their generosity as it gave me purpose and direction. Their messages arrived on the six-year anniversary of when my family learned of my nephew’s death who lived in this area for many years. When I told my sister about the generous offer, she smiled for the first time in weeks. Fueled by our early struggles, my sisters and I have always been service-driven. I’m humbled and a bit nervous by the responsibility, but plan to account for every dollar spent and share that transparently.

With that in mind I visited Unicoi County where 100 people were still missing to understand current needs. What I saw there broke and warmed my heart at the same time.

I spoke with one of the lead volunteers at the Middle School who outlined all the efforts the community had taken. The ATVs above are being used to ferry in supplies to areas where roads no longer exist and people were stranded. High-school students are volunteering to load the helicopters. Local firefighters are coordinating the efforts. The pain and tear tracks were evident on their faces, but nothing would stop these people from helping their neighbors.

Many here don’t have much. The median income in Erwin, TN is $40,670. But they will quite literally give you the shirt off their backs if needed. And they do not discriminate. The person with whom I spoke made a point to mention how the Hispanic community, her friends, were hurting. This is how many small towns work. They don’t do identity politics. They cannot afford to as they need each other too much. Some of the people who died in the plant were immigrants. Their co-worker, a white man, cried on TV talking about how they used to “cut-up” together while at work and have a good time.

So, no, Appalachia is NOT full of conspiracy theorists who hate whatever Other is the flavor of the week. If you have not read this linked post, I highly recommend it as it explains in many ways who these people are. They are hard workers who love their land. Does that sound like you?

The hatred I am seeing on social media to politicize these events - some even saying “they” deserved it on Day 1 for being Trump supporters - should not be our focus. Asheville was very blue, so these are not informed posts. The backlash for sharing pleas for help for this community and reporting important information has been sharp and fueled with hatred. But, as I said in my post about the first assassination attempt, are they even human or is it a bot account?

I think what has become increasingly evident this year is that the press and our leaders have little interest in telling us what is really going on.

Are our leaders taking advantage of the situation in Chimney Rock, a city which no longer exists, to seize land to repurpose for lithium mining? I have no idea, but based on all we have learned this year at this point the only thing I can reasonably trust is what I’m seeing with my own eyes. What I’m seeing is that these communities are being left to fend for themselves and they are doing their absolute best to do so. How many lives were lost because help did not arrive in time? We may or may not ever know. One poster asked me what I would want additional National Guard to do? I said more of what they have already done like saving over 50 people from the roof of the hospital in Unicoi County.

I feel completely inadequate to share this story. There just aren’t words to describe the devastation in these communities. What hurts more than anything is that their stories are not being told. Thus begins my journey to try and tell them while assisting with rebuilding the community. I have a feeling my Forgotten American series is about to become even more poignant in its rendering of tales of those who feel forgotten by their leaders and fellow Americans. Please do not forget them. And please don’t forget that we are both human and American. Our leaders want us to believe we all hate each other. That simply is not the case.

If you would like to contribute, I can help in three different ways:

1. You can contribute directly to my GoFundMe for relief efforts: https://gofund.me/9a331cba
   

2. You can send XRP through my new wallet setup with the help of that incredibly generous community. This money will be used in partnership with the Coalition for Kids - a local ministry serving this community for over 20 years - to assist with their relief efforts.

   Wallet Address: rMdG3ju8pgyVh29ELPWaDuA74CpWW6Fxns

   Tag 1794849749

   If you reply in email, I can send you a QR code

3. There are several local organizations that I would recommend who are giving direct relief and taking donations. Please just email me with how you want to help, and I will send you some info. You can also directly donate money for fuel for pilots by calling Lincoln County in NC directly at 704-735-0602

Losing my power for so many days with no help in sight - not one power truck showed up in our area until Tuesday - made me feel powerless in ways that are hard to describe. We were completely accessible. Is the worst over? My visit to the grocery store yesterday says maybe not. The grocer told me that every delivery truck this week has been cancelled as they usually come from Asheville or Atlanta. With the port strike and road access cut off we may start to see shortages. Additionally, as more refugees make it down from the mountains the city will have many needs to meet. No matter what those in power do or don’t do, we are stronger than they want us to believe. We are many who have been convinced we are few. It’s time to start acting like it.

Coming Very Soon: Monthly summary with updates on those decreases in mortgage applications we saw this week.