300 people dead, at least 8 within the Commonwealth, and just weeks after disaster struck Gloucester County most Virginians are either picking up the pieces or picking up the phone and calling loved ones elsewhere in the South.
One such individual is Kyle McDaniel over at NOVA Common Sense, whose family was five miles away from where this tragedy struck:
I realize there are other things going on but please remember to keep our fellow Americans in your prayers. The death toll is approaching 300 and Alabama alone the death toll is 210. Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, Alabama were the hardest hit with neighborhoods literally gone. In West Birmingham, 2000 homes are gone, and closer to the city over 3000 are gone. The numbers from this storm are truly astronomical and this storm is being referred to as “Alabama’s Katrina.”
…
The following is an account of the state of things in Smithville, Mississippi:
“The Smithville resident exited the broken building to survey the damage but wasn’t prepared for what he saw – an entire community in ruins.
Town Hall: Gone.
Police Station: Gone.
Post Office: Gone
Mel’s Diner: Gone
Smithville Baptist Church: Gone
Smithville United Methodist Church: Gone
Phil’s Place: Gone.
Neighborhood after neighborhood: Gone, gone and gone.
I remember when La Plata, Maryland was hit with a tornado some years back. Completely wiped the town off the map. Hundreds of people’s livelihoods, fortunes, histories, homes — all broken in one brief instant.
There’s a lot of Americans hurting right now, and a lot of folks who are digging out. Keep them in mind this weekend.
