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WEBVTT 3 FOR RESIDENTS OF FRIPP ISLAND, THE RECOVERY FROM HURRICANE MATTHEW HAS BEEN A SLOW, SOMETIMES PAINFUL PROCESS. BUT NEIGHBORS SAY, IT'S ALSO BROUGHT THEM CLOSER TOGETHER. WJCL'S TORI SIMKOVIC HAS THE STORY. 3 3 MORE THAN A WEEK AFTER HURRICANE MATTHEW, FRIPP ISLAND RESIDENTS ARE STILL CLEANING UP AND DRYING OUT. ::NATS:: SOME 3 HOMES HAD THREE FEET OF FLOODING IN THE STORM'S AFTERMATH.THAT WAS THE CASE FOR CLIFTON SPANN, A LONGTIME FRIPP RESIDENT.I'M GOING TO HAVE TO REPLACE THE ROOF.HAD DAMAGED ROOF, DAMAGED SHEET ROCK ON THE INSIDE OF THE HOUSE.WE STILL HAVE LOTS OF TRASH PILED ON THE SIDE OF THE ROADS.ON TUESDAY, FRIPP'S WATER PROVIDER FINALLY LIFTED THE BOIL ADVISORY, LETTING RESIDENTS KNOW THE WATER IS SAFE TO DRINK.UNTIL TWO DAYS AGO, HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO TAKE SHOWERS.THE SEWER SYSTEM ONLY CAME BACK UP ABOUT THREE DAYS AGO.IT HASN'T BEEN EASY, SPANN SAID, BUT IT'S BONDED THE RESIDENTS WITH EACHOTHER.WE'RE FORTUNATE THAT FRIPP ISLAND IS A SMALL COMMUNITY OF PERMANENT RESIDENTS, ONLY ABOUT 700 AND EVERYBODY JUST JUMPS IN AND HELPS THEIR NEIGHBORS.::NATS:: AND THAT'S WHA 3 DAVID STUART HAS DONE, PRESSURE CLEANING THE GARAGE FOR HIS NEIGHBORS WHO HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO MAKE IT BACK.OUR HOME WAS PRETTY MUCH UNTOUCHED, WE HAD A COUPLE TREES AND A FEW THINGS LIKE THAT BUT CERTAINLY DIDN'T HAVE THE WATER DAMAGE ALMOST VIRTUALLY THE REST OF THE ISLAND HAD.SO, HE'S SPENT HIS DAYS LENDING A HAND TO HIS NEIGHBORS.EVERYONE WAVES NOW. BEFORE IT WAS ABOUT HALF THE PEOPLE SO I THINK IT HAS REALLY DRAWN THE ENTIRE ISLAND TOGETHER.MANY RESIDENTS STILL DO NOT HAVE PHONE OR INTERNET SERVICES BUT THEY TELL ME THE ISLAND HAS COME A LONG WAY IN JUST A WEEK AND A HALF. REPORTING IN FRIPP ISLAND TORI SIMKOVIC WJCL 22 NEWS.

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More than a week after Hurricane Matthew, Fripp Island residents are still cleaning up and drying out. Many homes and garages had more than three feet of flooding in the storm’s aftermath. That was the case for Clifton Spann, a longtime Fripp homeowner. “I’m going to have to replace the roof. We have a damaged roof, damaged sheet rock on the inside of the house. We still have lots of trash piled on the side of the roads,” Spann said. On Tuesday, Fripp’s water provider finally lifted the boil advisory, letting residents know the water is okay to drink. “Until two days ago, haven’t been able to take showers. The sewer system only came back up about three days ago,” Spann said. It hasn’t been easy, but it’s bonded the residents together. “We’re fortunate that Fripp Island is a small community of permanent residents, only about 700, and everybody just jumps in and helps their neighbors,” Spann said. That’s exactly what David Stuart has been doing. On Tuesday, he pressure cleaned the garage for his neighbors who haven’t been able to return to the island. “Our home was pretty much untouched. We had a couple trees and a few things like that, but certainly didn’t have the water damage almost virtually the rest of the island had,” Stuart said. So, he’s spent the last few days lending a hand to his neighbors in need. “Everyone waves now. Before, it was about half the people, so I think it has really drawn the entire island together,” Stuart said.