Photo: ABC
Kimberly Kennedy’s wedding is a little over a week away, but it might have to be delayed thanks toHurricane Michael.
The deadly Category 4 storm has caused catastrophic devastation in the Florida Panhandle, where ittouched down on Wednesday — its 155 mph. winds and 13 foot storm surges demolishing property after property in its path.
Mexico Beach took a direct hit. Kennedy took shelter there in a concrete condo building blocks away alongside ABC News’ chief meteorologist Ginger Zee, the two surveying the damage from the balcony of their high-rise in footage that aired on Thursday’sGood Morning America.
Her wedding is supposed to be on Oct. 20, the ceremony and reception taking place at a historic building just 12 miles away in Port St. Joe, Florida.
But she might not have anything for it. The home where she was housing all of the supplies for her wedding — including her wedding dress — was in Mexico Beach. And from the window, a fearful Kennedy could see neighboring homes get blown away or flooded.
“Everything I have for my wedding is in that house,” Kennedy told Zee onGood Morning America.“It’s probably flooded or gone.”
That house was actually the home of longtime friend and groomsman Mark Parker. He toldGMAthat Kennedy and her husband Jason Kennedy had eloped in 2017, and “had been saving their money to have a perfect wedding.”
“I’m four blocks off the beach,” Parker explained. “I just saw a post on Facebook and the street leading to my house, they were going down it with a boat. I’m sure we probably got flooded, at the very least.”
“The devastation is just horrible,” he continued toGMA.“It looks like half the town is gone. … It’s just such a beautiful place with great people. Everyone is so tight-knit there, even if someone didn’t get hit, it’s like they got hit.”
Florida residents in this area haven’t seen a hurricane of this strength in their lifetimes. According to Dr. Phil Klotzbach, tropical scientist at Colorado State University,the Gulf Coast has never recorded a Category 4-plus hurricane landfall in records dating back to 1851.
More than 486,000 were without power in Florida, Georgia, Alabama and the Carolinas in the wake of the storm’s landfall, according toCNN.
“Mexico Beach was wiped out,” FEMA administrator William “Brock” Long said, according to CNN — adding, “that’s probably ground zero.”
“You are going to see a lot of destruction when the rescue crews get into Mexico Beach,” added Sen. Bill Nelson, according toCNN.“That’s where you’re going to see the extreme, extreme devastation.”
So far,at least 11 people have died from Hurricane Michael,The New York Timesreported. Officials have warned that the death toll could rise amid search and rescue efforts as the storm continues on.
source: people.com
