- Neighbors in Valdosta are preparing for another potential round of severe weather one week after a storm damaged dozens of homes.
- LAMP is opening up their day shelter for anyone who needs to take cover during Wednesday.
- Watch the video above to see how neighbors are preparing to weather any future storms.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
It's been a week since hurricane force winds damaged Valdosta, and now neighbors are preparing for more severe weather.
"Just think, in the middle of the night, if a tree falls through your house... where you gonna go?"
I'm Malia Thomas, your neighborhood reporter in Valdosta. I'm checking back in with neighbors who are bracing themselves for what's in the forecast. If you've been following my stories on housing insecurity, you'll recognize Yurshema Flanders, director of area shelter Lowndes Associated Ministries to people, better known as LAMP.
She's busy making room for the most vulnerable population during severe weather: the homeless. "I do know that there are places that some of the homeless individuals try to sleep in abandoned houses or even underneath them that's not going to be feasible for them during this type of weather."
LAMP is opening up their day shelter for anyone who needs to take cover during Wednesday's storm, but storm prep puts a strain on already waning resources. "It should be an emergency shelter, and it should not be the homeless shelter's responsibility to open an emergency weather shelter."
LAMP's not the only one feeling the heat.
Several neighbors are still reeling from Hurricane Idalia last August and last week's storm, which saw winds of up to 75 mph and damaged over 30 houses. Given the threat of storms in the First to Know Forecast, neighbors are asking, "is it going to get worse? Is it going to keep coming?"
WATCH THE DETAILED OUTLOOK FROM CHIEF METEOROLOGIST CASANOVA NURSE BELOW:
Dillon Tison was a neighbor I spoke with after Idalia destroyed his roof and pool deck. The latest storm missed his home, but he's still prepping for possible damage while keeping a more positive outlook. "I look forward to seeing what Mother Nature has in store for Valdosta. I hope she doesn't destroy it. The hurricanes, the storms... its like nature's way of cleansing itself."
