NCG Members looking to learn more about philanthropy’s response to Hurricane Florence are encouraged to attend a joint briefing by the Center for Disaster Philanthropy and the South Eastern Council on Foundations this Tuesday, September 18th at 12:00 noon PST.
Hurricane Florence began as a disturbance near the Southern Cabo Verde Islands on Friday, August 30, 2018 and was named Tropical Storm Florence on September 1st. Initially projected to pose no threat to land, she became the third named hurricane of the 2018 Atlantic Hurricane season on Sept 4th, fluctuating in intensity and dropping to a tropical storm again before increasing to a Category 4 hurricane on September 10th, threatening the Eastern seaboard.
On September 14th, Hurricane Florence made landfall near Wrightsville Beach (near Wilmington) in North Carolina at 7:15 am as a Category 1 hurricane, bringing a massive storm surge and sustained winds of up to 85 mph. The system inundated North Carolina and South Carolina with torrential rain for days. And forecasters continue to warn of “life-threatening, catastrophic flash flooding.”
To date, 23 deaths in the Carolinas have been attributed to the storm. Hundreds more are trapped and many places are impassable. Officials are warning of freshwater flooding as several North Carolina rivers will remain near or above record flood stage through the end of the week.
Panelists
- Edie Blakeslee – Vice President of Grantmaking & Community Leadership, Coastal Community Foundation of SC
- Ret Boney – Executive Director, North Carolina Network of Grantmakers
- Gregory A. Forrester – President and CEO, National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD)
- Eric Nankervis – Voluntary Agency Liaison / Mass Care and Emergency Assistance , FEMA Region IV Recovery Division
- JoAnn Turnquist – President and CEO – Central Carolina Community Foundation
- (Moderator) Robert G. Ottenhoff - Center for Distaster Philanthropy