Family who survived floods in North Carolina tells their story [View all]

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- Here and Now, October 04, 2024, WBUR (Boston):
https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2024/10/04/north-carolina-floods-family

Andy Fyfe (right) and his sister-in-law Leah Smith working with BeLoved Asheville.

As waters rose from Hurricane Helene, Andy Fyfe left his wife Chloe and their 1-year-old son Keleo in the attic of their house and waded over to his fourth-generation Appalachian neighbors’ home to help them evacuate.

Fyfe lives in the mountains above Asheville, North Carolina, an area hit hard by Helene. By the time Fyfe got out of his own home and over to his neighbors, the storm turned into a flash flood that redirected straight into their home.

“You immediately feel humble, powerless, and yet you have this conviction of doing nothing but supporting and being of service to your neighbors in that very moment,” Fyfe says. “It was hard to be doing that while knowing that my beloved and my baby were here next door in my own house because you're drawn between so many needs all at once.”

Fyfe and his neighbors Bob and Jane tried to hold the doors closed with their body weight, but the water still came rushing in. Furniture started floating, and heavy objects became like missiles.

More at link: https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2024/10/04/north-carolina-floods-family

Some of you may be familiar with Keleo’s Mom, Chloe Smith, and her sister, Leah, wonderful vocalists and composers who lead the band Rising Appalachia.

Resilient
Rising Appalachia

I am resilient
I trust the movement
I negate the chaos
Uplift the negative
I'll show up at the table
Again and again and again
I'll close my mouth and learn to listen

These times are poignant
The winds have shifted
It's all we can do
To stay uplifted
Pipelines through backyards
Wolves howling out front
Yeah I got my crew but truth is what I want

Realigned and on point
Power to the peaceful, prayers to the waters
Women at the center
All vessels open to give and receive
Let's see this system brought down to its knees

I'm made of thunder, I'm made of lightning
I'm made of dirt, yeah
Made of the fine things
My father taught me
That I'm a speck of dust and this world
Was made for me so let's go and try our luck

I've got my roots down down down down down down deep
I've got my roots down down down down down down deep
I've got my roots down down down deep
I've got my roots down down down deep

So what are we doing here
What has been done
What are you gonna do about it
When the world comes undone
My voice feels tiny
And I'm sure so does yours
Put us all together we'll make a mighty roar

I am resilient
I trust the movement
I negate the chaos
Uplift the negative
I'll show up at the table again and again and again
I'll close my mouth and learn to listen...