What’s Good in Neighborhood: The Heroes of Hurricane Michael
View of the damaged caused by Hurricane Michael in Mexico Beach, Florida, on October 13, 2018, in Mexico Beach, Florida, three days after Hurricane Michael hit the area. - Since Hurricane Michael roared through on October 10, a wide swath of Florida's northwest coast has been without telephone or Internet service, adding to the daunting challenges facing residents, loved ones trying to reach them, and the work crews struggling to bring them relief. A bridge was washed out between Mexico Beach and Port St. Joe to the southeast, making it impossible to get there via coastal roads (Photo by HECTOR RETAMAL / AFP) (Photo credit should read HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP/Getty Images)
The Wiregrass is still stepping up to the plate in big ways after Hurricane Michael rampaged through the region.
The endless hours that Michael Allred put in to feed linemen in Blakely showed us the relentless American spirit as he slept in his truck for minutes at a time for days — to make sure workers were well fed.
“They’re just glad to have a good meal and keep on moving,” Allred said.
Then, there was pastor Eddie Stapleton of the Glorious Community Holiness Church, whose cheerful disposition while spreading God’s love helped to feed hundreds thanks to the Cosby brothers, members of the church on Early County’s Highway 62.
“Come by and get you some chicken, some hot dogs, hamburgers, sausage, whatever you want,” Stapleton said.
There was also the toughness of that lineman we introduced you to, who smashed his finger while operating his bucket truck.
“I smashed it between a cross arm,” he said. “All we had to do was tape it up, and we was back at it.”
In Madrid, the mayor of Madrid picked people up in the height of the storm and drove them to safety at the senior center, and here in Dothan, one man on a mission loaded up truckloads of food at the West Side Walmart — making a difference for those affected by the storm.
But it wasn’t just adults who were the heroes of the storm. Little Lilly’s tractor did plenty of work, each turn of the wheel making our community better.
Things look different now, but those are the scars left behind from a story we’ll tell forever.
To everyone who’s helped, you’re a hero in your own special way, and you are what’s good in the neighborhood this week.