Their homes destroyed by Florence, North Carolina residents look to rebuild

NEW BERN, N.C. – The striking evidence of Hurricane Florence’s wrath lies in the front lawn of Patty and Philip Urick’s home bordering the Neuse River.

There’s a metal fence bent backward, a decapitated electrical box and household furniture littered in the grass.

The couple’s home, along with those of their neighbors, was all but destroyed by violent flooding when the storm hit Thursday evening. The water crested near the tops of their doorways. As water and debris accumulated, the front doors caved in and the garage door in the back was ripped apart, sending water into the house and washing out what was inside.

Thousands of dollars of worth furniture the Urick’s had on the first floor was all destroyed. Their wine bottles crashed and broke. On Saturday, nearly two days since their power first went out, the house was still muddy and the front walkway impassable.

The couple, who moved into the three-story row home 14 years ago, rode out the storm on the second floor.

“We figured we were safe here on the second floor,” said Philip Urick, 82, “and we also surmised the storm was not going to be near as severe as it was.”

At the height of the storm, their black Lab, Lady Margaret Thatcher, swam out the front of the house.

“She was swimming around here, there and everywhere,” Urick said. “She was as happy as can be swimming with the debris.”

Their next-door neighbor, Jerry King, 75, and his wife, Barbara, were also upstairs braving the storm on the sleepless night.

The water cleaned out his wife’s first floor art studio, ripping a massive cabinet from the wall and sweeping away hundreds of family photos. Some were later found outside on the sidewalk. A high school photo of Barbara’s clung to one of their walls. The drawers in his office were destroyed.

The water was so strong, one of their neighbors’ benches ended up in the art studio.

“It just floated over here,” King said

Both of the retired couples now search for an end to the ordeal. Their homes, which offer beautiful river views, could take months to refinish. The first job is wiping away the mud and clearing the debris from their homes and yards.

“It’s devastating,” King said. “There’s so much to clean up.”

For the Uricks, regaining electricity is a key concern so they can cool their house and cook. The couple is surprisingly upbeat for having part of their home destroyed.

“I learned a long time ago – I can’t control it, I can’t get mad,” Philip Urick said.

The Kings are deciding whether to stay in the home while it undergoes repairs.

“We really loved it,” King said.  “We just want to rebuild and get back to our old ways.”