As Hurricane Ian approaches, Robeson Co. man still holds out hope for state relief years after Florence

Four years after Hurricane Florence, one Robeson County man says he still hasn’t received aid from the state to repair his badly damaged home.

In the rural town of Rowland, Derrick Thorpe’s home is falling apart. Bathroom floors are collapsed, and ceilings have been torn wide open, the floor below them covered in debris.

It looks like the home is fresh off a disaster. But this storm came four years ago.

“When Florence hit, initially it was this room that was impacted,” Thorpe told WRAL News as he picked through the wreckage.

Thorpe is one of thousands of North Carolinians whose homes were hit by flooding and wind damage from Hurricane Florence in September 2018.

He hasn’t been able to work a job since 2005 due to a disability.

On anniversary of Hurricane Florence, state leaders say too many people still waiting for help

Since the storm, Thorpe has had to sell all of his furniture to pay the bills.

He hasn’t slept in a bed in four years. With a broken HVAC system, the temperature inside his home can rise to over 100 degrees during the summer.

“It just seemed like there was nothing to be done to help,” Thorpe said.

It hasn’t been for lack of trying.

Thorpe told WRAL News that in 2020 he began applying for help from Rebuild NC, the effort from the state’s Office of Recovery and Resiliency to help homeowners impacted by Hurricane Florence.

Thorpe said he was initially approved for a home repair, but his case was later closed and he wasn’t notified, and an attorney had to help him get it back online.

“Rebuild [NC] then told me they didn’t have a timeline as to when they had to make a decision [on my application],” Thorpe said. “And at that point emotionally I just kind of threw my hands up.”

Thorpe said in September he decided to give up hope and withdrew his application for help from Rebuild NC.

The organization’s most recent quarterly report showed that four years after Hurricane Florence, it’s only repaired 22 properties out of a set goal of 3,045.

Around 20 percent of Rebuild NC’s Hurricane Florence recovery funding has been set aside for projects so far, and the completion date to spend all of it won’t come until 2026.

Thorpe said on top of the repair costs, he’s fallen behind on his mortgage. He would need to raise nearly $50,000 to avoid being foreclosed on.

With his ceiling still gashed open, we asked Thorpe what he planned to do when the remnants of Hurricane Ian were expected to arrive over the weekend.

“I don’t know,” he replied through tears.

WRAL News reached out to Rebuild NC to ask what led up to Thorpe’s case being permanently closed.

A spokesperson for Rebuild NC responded: "The North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency is dedicated to improving its programs and helping storm survivors return home as quickly as possible. While recent policy and program changes are steps in the right direction, NCORR will continue to evaluate recovery progress and identify additional improvements that will better serve homeowners participating in our programs."