5 Dead In Historic Flooding In Western North Carolina
HAYWOOD COUNTY, N.C. — Search efforts continued Sunday in Haywood County. Crews focused on locating the last remaining person still unaccounted for following Tropical Storm Fred.
Five people have been confirmed dead — Frank Mungo, 86, Franklin McKenzie, 68, Judy Mason, 73, Charlene Mungo, 83, all of Cruso have now been identified and families notified.
The fifth victim, Frank Lauer, Sr., 74, of Cruso was located Sunday, and his family have been notified.
Charlotte Fire has assisted in search and rescue efforts. They posted photos on social media of large piles of debris in the town in Cruso.
HAYWOOD COUNTY, N.C. — Four people are now confirmed dead in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Fred in Haywood County. Four people remain unaccounted for.
The victims are Frank Mungo, 86, Franklin McKenzie, 68, Judy Mason, 73, Charlene Mungo, 83, all of Cruso.
Over 225 searchers were deployed Saturday on day four of search and rescue efforts in the aftermath of the storm.
Heavy equipment teams are moving into the area and beginning the process of clearing the largest debris piles. The Western North Carolina Flooding Home Cleanup Hotline number is — 828-222-3975.Residents who are working on clearing debris from their properties are encouraged to document as much as possible with photographs before they move anything so that complete damage assessments can be made.
In the process of removing debris, please do not pile it into state roads. Doing so may block access to rescue vehicles and other essential traffic.
Residents hoping to access active search areas are being asked to present identification before entering restricted areas.
The emergency shelter at Tuscola High School is now closed. Anyone still needed long or short -term shelter should contact the helpline number.
HAYWOOD COUNTY, N.C. — Governor Roy Cooper toured the disaster areas after remnants of Tropical Storm Fred ravaged parts of Western North Carolina. Two people drowned in the storm. At least 17 people are still unaccounted for. One of the hardest hit areas was Cruso, a town of only about 12,000 people. Dozens of homes were destroyed, cars were tossed in trees. Cooper says the state is committed to helping storm victims rebuild.
“We are in one of the most beautiful places on the planet in Western North Carolina, some of the best people, one of the greatest places to visit, but every once in a while mother nature strikes,” says Governor Roy Cooper.
Cooper says the state is helping with cell phone tracking to find those who are still missing. Crews, many of them from Charlotte, have rescued more than 200 people from the floods. The state will also help people who’ve lost everything find temporary housing.
Haywood county officials say over 200 structures throughout the county are destroyed.
The Latest:
Authorities say two people are confirmed dead and approximately 20 others are still unaccounted for in western North Carolina from the aftermath of Tropical Depression Fred.
Officials have not released the names of the two people who were found dead by rescuers overnight. More than 200 rescue crews are still looking for survivors.
Original Story (Posted August 18, 2021):
CANTON, N.C. — North Carolina is under a state of emergency after remnants of Tropical Depression Fred caused devastating flooding across the western portion of the state.
Dozens of people were unaccounted for Wednesday night, bridges are washed away and homes were destroyed by floodwaters. Nearly a foot of rain has fallen over parts of the area over the past three days. People living in Haywood and Transylvania Counties experienced the brunt of the storm. Crews rescued dozens of people from floodwaters, but spent the night attempting to reach more than 30 people unaccounted for because of a lack of cell service.
“We’ve lived here 30 something years, and that’s the worst I’ve ever seen it,” says Brenda Myers, Canton Resident.
“When people see people hurting, they rise up. That brings the best out of people,” says Chris Jennings, owner of Community Kitchen.
More than 150 volunteers showed up to help clean up the Community Kitchen that was ravaged by floods. The non-profit group feeds the homeless and the elderly across parts of Western, NC. The owners say the kitchen lost 200-thousand pounds of food in one day.
More than 250 responders from across the state are involved in search and rescue efforts. Utility companies are working to restore power. More than 50,000 customers experienced outages Tuesday night.
