The Rev. Tyler Daniels spent his Sunday not preaching but rescuing hundreds of people from their flooded homes in and around Leland, North Carolina.
“We saved a lot of people’s lives,” said the United Methodist pastor, who also serves as a volunteer firefighter. But making people whole will take much longer.
“Just seeing the way my community is right now, it’s absolutely devastated,” Daniels said. “Thousands of people have no place to go.”
The slow-moving storm also has led to the deaths of at least 33 people — 26 in North Carolina, six in South Carolina and one in Virginia.
While the record-breaking rains of Florence have stopped in much of the eastern Carolinas, waters are still on the rise and an increasing number of homes, businesses and churches are underwater. Some rivers are expected to crest Sept. 19. Learn more from Heather Hahn’s UMNS story…
To help
- Donate to the U.S. Disaster Response Advance #901670 for the United Methodist Committee on Relief.
- Donate to North Carolina Conference Response
- Donate to South Carolina Conference Response
“I appreciate all the faithful efforts and gifts that have come from our churches in recent weeks and ask that all prayerfully consider additional steps,” said Philadelphia Area Bishop Peggy Johnson. “Take another offering, send a work team out to help and cover all of these efforts with prayer.”
Also, find more information about UMCOR’s response and about local churches dealing with Hurricane Florence and Super Typhoon Mangkhut, which struck the northern part of the Philippines.