75 daily $1.

25 SUNDAY

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2016 y o u r n e ws s o u r c e S i n c e 1 8 8 2 kinston, NC

the flooding in photos local athletes pitch in

Free Press photographers document the scenes Kinston athletes and alumni are working to help people
as the Kinston area deals with high waters. A8 who have been affected by Hurricane Matthew. B1

MATTHEW AFTERMATH NEUSE CRESTING

Riding out Matthews flooding

n Greene County n Everyday n Isolated areas n Downtown Kinston n Pet shelter opens
facing its own flood people step up await fresh still bustling after in southern Lenoir.
challenges. A2 to help. A3 supplies. A7 dark. A7 A7

East New Bern Road looking toward U.S. 258 South near Lenoir Community College is submerged Friday in several feet of flood water from the Neuse River. Photo by Ken Blevins/
Gatehouse Media

Neuse expected to set new record at crest of 28.6 feet, twice the flood stage, early Saturday morning
By Adam Wagner
GateHouse Media
KINSTON | Jacqueline Ruffin,
a resident of the Simon Bright
neighborhood, sat outside Friday
with her friends, watching as wa-
ter left behind by Hurricane Mat-
thew slowly crept across the road
in front of her apartment.
Its like watching a nature show
on TV, she said. All these people
that have never seen the Neuse,
here it is.
As Simpson stared at the Neuse
River, it was nearing its project-
ed crest, already having blown
past the record set by Hurricane
Floyds flooding in 1999. The Na-
tional Weather Service predicted
the river, which reaches flood stage
at 14 feet, would crest at a new re-
cord 28.6 feet around 2 a.m. Satur-
day, remaining steady around 28.6
feet before beginning to fall.
As the rivers rise slowed Friday,
emergency officials and city lead-
ers were beginning to turn their
eyes to the challenges the com-
ing days, weeks and months will
bring.
We had the preparation, then
we had the response, now were
fixing to get to the recovery side,
said Roger Dail, Lenoir Countys
director of emergency services.
And the recovery side is the hard
side because theres a lot of people
out there who are hurt.
During the course of the week,
the Neuse spilled over its banks
and into the 100-year flood plain
from the Wayne County line on
the west to the Craven County on
the east.
As of Friday afternoon, there
were 74 people in the Red Cross
shelter at Kinston High School,
with 110 more at Lenoir Commu-
nity College. What remained un-
clear was how many others had
evacuated, fleeing to friends and
family as the flood water seeped
into their homes.
As residents begin returning to
their homes, the assessment phase
will begin, with teams spreading
across the county to determine
the dollar amount of the damage
caused by Hurricane Matthews
flooding. Lenoir County will ask
state and federal emergency man-
agement professionals to aid with
that effort, Dail said.
Those whose homes suffered
storm damage can register for
federal assistance with the Federal
Emergency Management Agency.
A FEMA official will visit Kinston
on Saturday to begin coordinating
See FLOODING A4

Still here: As flood waters rise, some residents stay home

By Dustin George
Staff Writer
Friday morning, Leytre-
cia Marshall, Edna Briggs
and Josephine Harper, with
her dog, Rusty, sat outside
of a home on Cedar Lane in
Kinston, just a few feet away
from the water slowing pour-
ing into their neighborhood.
There is nothing like
sleeping in your own bed,
said Briggs, who, with her
husband, returned to her
home early Friday morning,
after staying with a family
member. We came back this
morning and we checked on
our house and we checked
on the neighbors, and then I
went inside and took a nap.
Cedar Lane was one of
multiple low-lying areas
Josephine Harper plays with her dog Rusty while sitting with friends along Cedar Lane in Kinston on where mandatory evacu-
Friday. Residents were asked to evacuate the street earlier this week. While many left, some stayed. ations were issued earlier
Photo by Zach Frailey / The Free Press this week, in anticipation of
the Neuse River flooding the
area. Now that the river has
officially started flooding the
city, simply traveling to the
small neighborhood involves
passing by a maze of closed,
flooded or blocked roads.
Most of the neighborhood
is underwater, and the ma-
jority of its residents either
moved out or fled earlier in
the week, including Briggs,
who suspects the storage
unit she moved most of her
valuables to has now flooded,
even as her house remains
dry.
Briggs said she came back
home because she didnt feel
comfortable leaving what
she had left at home unsu-
pervised. As they evacuated,
many of Briggs neighbors
placed orange stickers on
their doors, signifying that
they had left home.
Those stickers are a sign
that no one is home, Harper,
also of Cedar Lane, said.
Harper, like Briggs is
lucky. Her house is still dry,
and the water appears to
have stopped well short of
her driveway.
We are here to look out for
each other, Harper said. To
make sure no one is taking
advantage of our neighbors
while they are gone, because
there isnt anybody else com-
ing back here to check for
them.
Just a few houses down
from where the trio of wom-
en are keeping watch, Wil-
liam Murrell returned home
for what he called a much-
needed respite.
Ive been staying with my
mother-in-law, and she talks
all the time, Murrell said. I
See HOME A2

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