FAYETTEVILLE, NC — North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper toured areas of Fayetteville Monday and spoke with officials about Hurricane Matthew recovery efforts.
Nearly four months after Hurricane Matthew hit, hundreds of people are still displaced and several roads remain washed out.
Fayetteville and Cumberland County were hit particularly hard by Matthew, which dumped up to 14 inches of rain in some areas of the county.
On Monday, Cooper met with several Cumberland County leaders.
Cooper says the group discussed progress from Hurricane Matthew and other issues still pending.
“I’ve come personally to hear from these officials, what the glitches are, what we need to do, clearly, everyone wants help,” Cooper said.
Copper said that statewide more than 1,000 families remain in hotels following Matthew.
At least 200 of those families live in Cumberland County, Cooper said.
Another issue that is plaguing the area is that there are still several washed out roads.
“I’ve seen kids climb in there and try to get out on the other side and I’m afraid someone is gonna get hurt,” said Michael Hanna, who lives in Kings Grant
Hanna is talking about a massive hole near the entrance to the King’s Grant Subdivision.
Neighbors said the road collapsed during Hurricane Matthew and the road hasn’t been open since.
Fayetteville City Council member Kathy Jenson says 3,000 vehicles go in and out of the subdivision every day.
Jenson says it could cost up to $1.8 million to have the road repaired and it could take several months.
“We understand that the city has priorities and we’re sensitive to that but there’s a lot of tax base here and this is not doing our property value any good,” Hanna said.
Cooper also toured Cumberland County’s disaster relief recovery center.
Cooper said more than 81,000 families statewide have requested help from FEMA.
Nearly 15,000 of those families live in Cumberland County, according to Cooper.
Officials say the timeline for recovery is unknown, but it will require a team effort from residents and various agencies.
“That’s the one thing we wanna make sure our citizens understand, it’s not gonna happen overnight, we haven’t abandoned you, we’re here, we’re ready,” said Cumberland County Commissioner Glenn Adams.
