Hurricane Helene’s Aftermath Continues HELENE RECOVERY

Hurricane Helene roared from the Gulf of Mexico into places that had never seen the ferocity of a storm like this – including South Carolina’s Upstate and Western North Carolina. As of our Carolina Tails printing, 228 people were reported dead, with 92 still missing. North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said, “entire communities have been wiped off the map.” It’s in this context that Charleston Animal Society has reached out to help animal shelters in these devastated areas with a water drive, fundraising and other assistance. Carolina Tails recently spoke with Charleston Animal Society President and CEO Joe Elmore about the situation.

CAROLINA TAILS: Joe, help us put the tragedy of Hurricane Helene in perspective.

JOE ELMORE: We know now that the death toll in South Carolina alone has eclipsed the death toll from Hurricane Hugo, which hit the Charleston area as ground zero. This is how devastating it was just in South Carolina. Of course, Asheville and Western North Carolina are just destroyed. Basically, this is like Hurricane Katrina impact with New Orleans and southern Mississippi.

CT: At Charleston Animal Society, we have seen the reality of this disaster firsthand. Tell us about the man from Asheville who pulled up to the shelter in a pickup truck with a heartbreaking decision.

JE: He came to us with his dog because his home had been destroyed. He had to make the difficult decision to give his dog up. He’s not the only one. We’ve seen a couple of families come to us with their animals who had to make the decision to give them up because everything right now is just too overwhelming. And they’re doing this for the benefit of the animal, even though they don’t want to part with the animal. It’s really, really sad. But what we can commit to them is that we can find your animal a good home and we understand the situation that you’re in.

CT: Animal shelters in these areas are calling you because you’ve led Charleston Animal Society through storms, and you were with the ASPCA after Katrina. How are you helping to guide these organizations?

JE: We are in touch regularly with the leadership at Asheville Humane Society, which is on high ground and can act as somewhat of a hub. We are also in touch with the leadership at shelters in the Upstate to tell us what their critical needs are this week and what they will be next week. We’re going to be doing this through the end of the year and probably into 2025 because it’s that devastating, particularly in Western North Carolina. Charleston Animal Society over the past decade has just become one of the leading disaster responders and large animal cruelty operation responders in the region.

CT: What do you say to folks who are asking why we are we giving all this attention to animals when so many people are suffering?

JE: Well, here’s the thing — everyone has their niche in a disaster. Our niche is animals. Most people, and I’m talking about 80% of folks who have animals, consider them a member of the family. So, it’s humans and animals that we’re assisting. Other organizations have their niches. Environmental organizations have their area of focus. The Red Cross has its area of focus. Emergency management glues all this together. It’s not a zero-sum game. Some people incorrectly believe that if you provide assistance to one individual or one creature, then another one suffers. It doesn’t work like that.

CT: Everyone looks back at Hugo, how Charleston was helped. And so is this in a way paying it forward?

JE: At Charleston Animal Society, our Board of Directors in 2013 adopted a guiding principle that we have a disproportionate responsibility to others. And if there are families in need with their animals anywhere, and if we have the capacity to help them, then we will help them. It has also become an ethic the culture of our workforce, more than 100 employees and over 3000 volunteers.