Support Augusta’s Recovery After Hurricane Helene

Jennifer Rucker, Augusta resident for the past 25years.

Friday. Sept 27, 2024. We’re safe in Augusta. But trapped in our neighborhood and surrounded by neighbors walking around dazed and shell shocked. I walked/crawled/climbed through my neighborhood for 7hours in disbelief. Every street in my neighborhood is blocked with a mass of fallen trees, power lines, utility poles, and water. Most every house in my neighborhood has multiple trees on it or IN it, many cars crushed in driveways. 2 of the trucks had drivers in them as the trees crashed on them. At least 6 different families that I talked to narrowly escaped death as trees came crashing through their bedrooms while they slept.

The most bizzare part is that none of our weather radios alerted us. I just ‘happened’ to sleep in pajama pants instead of shorts Thurs. night for the first time since winter. No noise woke me. The only reason I woke up at 5am is because I was hot. I didn’t realize we’d lost power. My husband and son were sound asleep. When I looked out and saw all of the trees bending in half, I rushed us all into the laundry room. We heard only ONE tree come down as it grazed the house. Our next door neighbor said he watched every one of his pine trees fall down silently. Unreal. This is 10x worse than the 2014 ice storm that slammed Augusta.

We have no power, no running water. Very few neighbors have chainsaws so we’re all pretty helpless at the moment.

I’m so thankful God protected us in this. Trees can grow back. Homes can be repaired. Please join me in praying for Augusta, Georgia ❤️

God’s plans for us are good, and He always brings beauty from ashes ✝️. We can trust that He’s in control. Even the wind and the waves obey Him.

Tuesday, Oct 1 update: Still no running water or power in my neighborhood and most of the city. Our church friends came and ‘cut us’ out of the neighborhood, and we’re BEYOND thankful. My neighbors are hurting, my city is hurting. Ga Power has declared it the worst storm it’s seen since the company was founded in 1891.

Insurance will help, but the tasks are insurmountable and insurance companies won’t cover all of the needs. People keep asking me what they can do. I decided to use Go Fund Me to try to help my immediate neighborhood recover. I will distribute these funds for immediate needs and repair needs. The National Weather Service walked down my street Sunday and told me that my small neighborhood is the hardest hit they’ve seen in the 3 counties they’ve visited. They asked permission to use my photos to try to study weather pattern and improve their alert system.

The passage God keeps bringing to my mind is Psalm 121: 1-3 ‘I lift my eyes up to the hills, where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber’

Thank you for your continued prayers and your help. ❤️