‘We want to help.’ Dozens of seniors evacuating Florence get warm welcome in Georgia town
With Hurricane Florence bearing down on the Carolinas, thousands of people have fled the coast for the safety of hotels, campgrounds and homes further inland. Many of those evacuees have flooded into Georgia, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Mandatory evacuations included those staying in hospitals and senior care homes — and one such group made its way all the way to Fairburn in metro-Atlanta from Somerby Senior Living in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., WXIA reported.
Now people on social media are loving the heartfelt letter Fariburn police had waiting for the senior citizens when they arrived, offering comfort and promising to help how they could.
“Welcome to Fairburn. We know you’ve been through a lot and have a lot more to go through before it’s all over. We want to help in any way we can,” the letter, first reported by WSB in Atlanta, reads.
The letter says police will offer four hours of free shuttles daily to evacuees staying in hotels, which will take them to local dollar stores, grocery stores, restaurants and churches.
“If you need any help, just ask one of our officers and we will be happy to assist,” the letter finishes.
About 90 residents and 30 staff members took the trip to Georgia, where they arrived with clothes and bedding but little else, WXIA reported.
On Facebook, the Fairbanks police appealed to local citizens to help donate supplies and entertainment for the new guests.
“We have a group of hurricane #Florence evacuees staying at the Wingate hotel in Fairburn. They will be with us for several days and we’re asking for supplies (personal items, board games, etc) to make them feel at home!” the department wrote.
On Facebook and Twitter, people praised the department for extending a welcoming hand to folks who were going through a scary and confusing time.
“We made a couple of phone calls. Everybody pulled together: The churches, the bishop. I mean if we said ‘Thank You’ a thousand times, it wouldn’t even hit the surface to be enough to say ‘Thank You,” said Hazel Patterson, general manager of Somerby of Mount Pleasant, according to WSB.
Other towns and hospitals in Georgia have also begun receiving medical evacuees, including hospitals in Augusta, Savannah, Waycross and Dublin, according to WABE.
“We will do everything possible to support those in South Carolina and the mid-Atlantic to weather Hurricane Florence safely and with the health care they need,” said Jay Goldstein, medical director of emergency services for Memorial Health in Savannah, according to the station.