Hurricane Helene was a natural disaster that occurred in Spartanburg as well as several other cities on Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. Beginning as a category four hurricane off the coast of Southwest Florida, Helene destroyed buildings, and flooded cities and nearly 4 million homes and businesses were left without power in Florida, Georgia and both Carolinas combined.
Helene was an eye-opening experience for many people, especially those who don’t consider hurricanes a natural disaster to worry about. Many events were unexpectedly postponed or canceled, including the 2024 Homecoming dance. Students in Spartanburg County could not attend school during the week of Sept. 20 through Oct. 4 and E-learning assignments could not be assigned to students due to internet loss and power outages. The damage of this hurricane will not be forgotten; instead, it will be used to teach others how to prepare for such a natural disaster.
Sierra Shuford (10) had a difficult experience with Hurricane Helene, and warns people to be ready, especially during Hurricane season.
“The best advice I would give to people preparing for a natural disaster is to expect the worst. Even if you think nothing will ever happen, it can. Be prepared for the worst possible outcome. Stock up on food that isn’t stored in a fridge. Make sure you’re ready if you need to leave your place of residence unexpectedly,” Shuford said. “Hopefully, nothing will happen. It’s the best plan of action. You want all of your preparation to be for nothing; that’s good. But in the small chance that the worst does happen, you’re prepared. And you’re ready.”
Due to trees lying everywhere and the long-lasting power outages, it was especially hard for athletes to stay active. After-school sports were not able to hold practices during this time. Traffic lights stayed unlit, confusing many drivers and therefore making the roads extremely dangerous.
Marianna Saad (11) is a runner on the Spartanburg High School Cross Country Team and did her best to stay active during the week out of school.
“I did have a foot injury that week, so I was told not to run, but I did do a lot of biking in the safe spots of my neighborhood. Though my mileage for it was very low, I was still able to get activity in,” Saad said.
Despite its destruction, Hurricane Helene also brought many people together. There was a new sense of community as many organizations that came together to help clean up after this storm. People came and restored many local trails around Spartanburg where branches, trees, powerlines and more debris littered their paths. This includes the Rail Trail, Cottonwood Trail and River Birch Trail.
Emmy Dyar (9) had at least 20 trees fall on her road and two in her yard, but she made sure to not only clean up her yard but help her neighbors as well.
“My family and I helped clean up people’s damage around the neighborhood, as did some friends. We had one neighbor in particular that I wanted to help because her husband had knee surgery, and it was difficult for him to clean up his yard. My dad went and cleaned it up for her and we got her gas for her generator,” Dyar said.
In Spartanburg, Hurricane Helene made a large imprint on society, and while there were struggles, the community managed to come together and preserve the city.
