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Saints help St. Augustine recover from Hurricane
Matthew
ST. AUGUSTINE – When Hurricane Mat-
thew, a category 3 storm, blasted into St.
Augustine on Friday, Oct. 7, its winds may
not have been as fierce as other hurri-
canes, but its storm surge flooded many
local businesses and homes in the historic
town with several feet of water.
When the flood waters receded, the
Flagler College community began to
reach out to help in the recovery effort.
The Student-Athlete Advisory Commit-
tee (SAAC), led by its president, Megan
Hooks, formed a group along with other
student volunteers to help the many res-
idents who had to deal with the damage
left by the hurricane. The primary focus on their first trip was the
Trade Wind Lane community in St. Augustine Beach.
“We paired up with The Exchange which is Michael Maiocco’s
(Flagler baseball player) college church group so there were a lot
of Flagler student-athletes and students helping out,” said Hooks, a
senior volleyball player. “We did a lot of what the people needed. We
pulled branches out of backyards, cleaned the inside of homes and
helped people sort through their belongings.”
One of the hardest hit areas was Dolphin Drive which is just
across the Bridge of Lions and runs parallel with the Mantanzas
River. Residents were dragging out mattresses, furniture and other
personal items to the curbs days after the storm hit. Many structures
were devastated by the flood waters. The help of the Flagler Athletics
teams was an immense help to those who would have spent many
days trying to peal up rotten floors and drywall by themselves.
“(The softball team) has gone out into the community three
times and we have been able to form a strong connection with the
families impacted,” said sophomore outfielder Megan Miller. “A lot
of the homes had up to four feet of water in them, so they needed to
have the drywall ripped out along with furniture and many personal
items like old photos were hauled to the curb. One family had lived in
their home since 1999 and all of their furniture is ruined. It was really
emotional.”
“We went up to one house and saw a man who looked a little
frazzled,” said Hooks. “He let us take care of his yard which was
littered with broken tree branches. His home had about four feet of
water, but he was very thankful for the help we were able to provide.”
The women’s basketball team helped peel up a wooden floor that
was anchored by a plethora of nails. The players and members of
the coaching staff helped extract the nails and continued to assist in
pulling down some drywall. The men’s basketball team helped clear
brush out of yards and pull damaged materials out of a house.
Flagler College on the streets of St. Augustine
6
2016-17