Op-Ed

Florence’s washed-out road sent family down different paths

By Karissa Sowers All I could hear was the helicopter rotor whipping its long blades as we waited on the grass to be rescued. The helicopter was there to rescue neighbors who were stuck after Hurricane Florence flooded all the roads near my grandparent’s home. There were only three roads that could get you to their house….

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An unwelcome storm makes this teen feel more welcomed

By Julia Narvaez I never realized what the word “community” meant until I handed a man a bright red Colgate box after Hurricane Florence. I’d never seen someone so happy. He picked up his son, who shared his big, bright smile, and told me he’d lost everything. His pictures. His son’s toys. Their home and sense…

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Waterlogged and waiting for hope

Waterlogged and waiting for hope By Jonny Morales I was looking at family photos, baby clothes, diplomas and other waterlogged possessions while waiting for teary-eyed homeowners to give me permission to throw them away. Forever. We were only 10 miles away from my home, so damaged by Hurricane Florence, that I would not be able to live in…

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A lesson in resilience

By Shamyia Robinson I’d never been truly influenced by fear until the morning the hurricane hit. It was 9 p.m. when my mom, little brother and I settled down on the couches, all of us watching the news about the catastrophic damage and storm surges that would come with Hurricane Florence. The Weather Channel was all…

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Not Quite Through the Storm

Shecoria adapts to tragedy after Hurricane Florence When Hurricane Florence hit coastal North Carolina, Shecoria Smith, age 16, was worried about her father returning from a work trip. Shecoria Smith was hunkered down with her mother as the wind and rain pounded her city when a call came making her realize that tragedy from the hurricane…

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Asthmatic High School Student Discusses COVID-19 & Hurricanes

Jonny Morales knows the hospitals in his communities all too well – from Emergency Room visits for the asthma attacks he’s had as long as he can remember to serving as a volunteer in his high school years. Now with the coronavirus outbreak, he’s anxious that his local healthcare system will be overwhelmed. But thinking…

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COVID-19, Ebola, and Racism

Amari Poindexter, 17, lives in Leland, North Carolina. Poindexter says the indifferent attitudes and racist reactions during the coronavirus pandemic in coastal North Carolina remind her of how her peers responded to the Ebola outbreak when she was in middle school. Broadcast from the Shoresides studio, Coastal Youth Media podcast brings you real people stories…

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Not Quite Through the Storm

Shecoria Smith was hunkered down with her mother as the wind and rain pounded her city when a call came making her realize that tragedy from the hurricane had hit close to home. Her friend’s mother and sibling were killed by a tree falling on their house. 

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