Opinion Decimated by Hurricanes, Rural America Needs Our Help

Sandy and Jerry Davis inspect their home in a low lying neighborhood that also got flooded two years ago during Hurricane Matthew in the small, inland community of Fair Bluff, N.C.

Sandy and Jerry Davis inspect their home in the inland community of Fair Bluff, North Carolina, which was flooded after Hurricane Florence. Damon Winter/The New York Times

With each new hurricane, the story of recovery becomes increasingly familiar: rebuild houses, fortify the coast, and wonder why people still live in such treacherous areas. Through all these calamities, we have learned little about how to respond with long-term fixes and how to help people hardest hit by the storms — not just coastal residents, but impoverished rural Americans in flood-prone areas.

Hurricane Michael is the latest storm to devastate the South, coming nearly one month after Hurricane Florence swept through the Carolinas, and two years after Hurricane Matthew did exactly the same.

After a hurricane, a familiar criticism arises about those who live in harm’s way, particularly along the coast: If we stopped building houses next to the ocean, we wouldn’t have these problems. Some have even called for an all-out retreat from the coast.

PRINCEVILLE GOLDSBORO KINSTON SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina PRINCEVILLE GOLDSBORO KINSTON SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina GOLDSBORO SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON South Carolina Atlantic Ocean PRINCEVILLE GOLDSBORO KINSTON SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina PRINCEVILLE GOLDSBORO KINSTON SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina GOLDSBORO SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON South Carolina Atlantic Ocean 26% chance of flooding over 30 years PRINCEVILLE GOLDSBORO KINSTON SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina PRINCEVILLE GOLDSBORO KINSTON SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina GOLDSBORO SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON South Carolina Atlantic Ocean Median income by zip code Bottom 5% < $27,344 Top 5% > $94,080 PRINCEVILLE GOLDSBORO KINSTON SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina PRINCEVILLE GOLDSBORO KINSTON SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina GOLDSBORO SEVEN SPRINGS North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON South Carolina Atlantic Ocean Median income by zip code Bottom 5% < $27,344 Top 5% > $94,080 The reality is that coastal communities like those on North Carolina’s Outer Banks and southern shore have better access to resources that aid recovery than low-lying areas far from the Atlantic. Much of North Carolina’s coast is crisscrossed by rivers and tributaries, so many communities there are at high risk of flooding. People living along the coast tend to have higher incomes and live in newer homes, and are more likely to have flood insurance. Meanwhile, inland rural communities face conditions that can be equally damaging, but often longer-lasting because of floodwaters that linger for weeks after a hurricane passes.

The reality is that coastal communities like those on North Carolina’s Outer Banks and southern shore have better access to resources that aid recovery than low-lying areas far from the Atlantic.

Much of North Carolina’s coast is crisscrossed by rivers and tributaries, so many communities there are at high risk of flooding.

North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina 26% chance of flooding over 30 years North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON 26% chance of flooding over 30 years South Carolina Atlantic Ocean 26% chance of flooding over 30 years

People living along the coast tend to have higher incomes and live in newer homes, and are more likely to have flood insurance.

North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina Median income by zip code Top 5% Bottom 5% >$94,080 < $27,344 North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON South Carolina Atlantic Ocean Median income by zip code Top 5% Bottom 5% >$94,080 < $27,344

Meanwhile, inland rural communities face conditions that can be equally damaging, but often longer-lasting because of floodwaters that linger for weeks after a hurricane passes.

North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON Atlantic Ocean South Carolina Median income by zip code Top 5% Bottom 5% >$94,080 < $27,344 North Carolina LUMBERTON FAIR BLUFF WILMINGTON South Carolina Atlantic Ocean Median income by zip code Top 5% Bottom 5% >$94,080 < $27,344

Erica and Kelvin Graham embody the kind of families common in flood-prone inland communities. Residents of Fair Bluff, N.C., the couple were left wading through floodwaters once again last month when Hurricane Florence caused the Lumber River to inundate their home. That very same home flooded two years ago during Hurricane Matthew. Yet the couple said they were still waiting for the bulk of federal recovery-assistance money for the 2016 storm, which would have allowed them to either elevate their house above flood level or relocate to higher ground.

Erica and Kelvin Graham were living out of the cab of their long haul truck after their home was flooded by Hurricane Florence. Damon Winter/The New York Times

Coastal-plain residents like the Grahams typically don’t casually choose to live in harm’s way; they are deeply connected to a landscape, a culture and a way of life that makes their place home. North Carolina river towns like Fair Bluff, Goldsboro, Kinston, Lumberton, Princeville and Seven Springs have long, storied histories — Lumberton is home to the largest Native American community east of the Mississippi River, the Lumbee, and Princeville is the oldest town chartered by African-Americans in the United States.

Share of North Carolina homes in the 100-year floodplain with flood insurance Wilmington 51.0% Urban Kinston 26.4 Goldsboro 26.4 Rural Lumberton 18.7 Fair Bluff 17.5 Share of North Carolina homes in the 100-year floodplain with flood insurance Wilmington 51.0% Urban Kinston 26.4 Goldsboro 26.4 Rural Lumberton 18.7 Fair Bluff 17.5 Notes: Based on zip codes within these locations. Source: Syndeste

These rural towns have much in common: river’s edge locations tied to agrarian roots; household incomes far below those required to live on the coast; and historic houses, town halls and churches in areas designated as floodplains.

It should come as no surprise that some of the poorest, most disenfranchised populations live in high-risk floodplain areas, and they are often the least equipped to evacuate before the storms or rebuild afterward.

Those trends, ever apparent in the Carolinas, hold true for much of the southeastern coastal regions frequented by hurricanes, including the Florida panhandle devastated this week by Hurricane Michael.

Lumberton North Carolina Wilmington North Carolina Communities around Wilmington have higher median incomes than more inland communities like Lumberton. Florida Tallahasee Panama City Beach Hurricane Michael path Florida Communities around Panama City Beach are also richer than less coastal communities. Median income by zip code Top 5% Bottom 5% > $94,080 < $27,344 North Carolina Florida Hurricane Michael path Lumberton Panama City Beach Wilmington North Carolina Florida Communities around Wilmington have higher median incomes than more inland communities like Lumberton. Communities around Panama City Beach are also richer than less coastal communities. Median income by zip code Top 5% Bottom 5% >$94,080 < $27,344

So what are we to do for these vulnerable people?

Historically, disaster response has been mostly reactive: wait for federal programs to acquire houses and move residents to higher ground away from floodplains; elevate houses and structures for those unable or unwilling to relocate; prepare community shelters and recovery structures for those who can’t retreat; and place storm survivors in temporary housing until they are able, if ever, to repair or reconstruct. These are practical, physical matters.

Jerry Davis inspects his garage in Fair Bluff, N.C., where he had stored furniture and other belongings. Damon Winter/The New York Times

But we need to demand more than a “bounce back,” or return to what was, from our investment in recovery efforts. This requires a marked shift from reactive to proactive approaches to policy, planning and design.

Policies should address larger social issues of inequity and recognize a changing climate. Conventional construction, development and management practices need to change to adapt to floodplains and flood-prone areas — and governments need to acknowledge that some places are too dangerous for development. Rebuilding efforts must take into account community development, natural systems and the need for affordable, resilient and dignified housing.

This home in Fair Bluff, N.C., shown in a reflection from floodwaters, was hit two years ago by Hurricane Matthew. It was flooded again this year by Hurricane Florence. Damon Winter/The New York Times

Investing more in hazard mitigation and risk-reduction efforts is a critical first step. This can be accomplished by speeding the delivery of assistance from notoriously bureaucratic programs like the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program and the Community Development Block Grant Program. Additionally, all pre- and post-disaster investments must support robust, well-articulated plans to carry out these efforts. This requires technical and administrative support to help rural communities manage recovery funding that greatly exceeds their normal operating budgets and human resources.

All of these difficult actions require that we protect community integrity while promoting environments that are safe and equitable for all. There were only a few weeks between Hurricanes Florence and Michael. This could provide the impetus to take continued, measurable action. Perhaps, this time, rural people and places ravaged by the storms will get the long-term support they desperately need to sustain their communities.

Damon Winter contributed reporting.