Central Regional High School teacher Mark Haug lost his home in Ocean Gate to Superstorm Sandy in 2012. And after his own long road to recovery, Haug has vowed to help others going through a similar struggle.
In the face of Hurricane Helene’s destructive path through the South, Haug recently packed his bags and traveled to Vidalia, Georgia. Haug spoke with NJ Spotlight News Anchor Briana Vannozzi from Vidalia in the midst of his relief efforts and his one-man nonprofit operation fittingly called, “Hold On, I’m Coming.”
“We had a woman, she got out of a car yesterday and passed out. She hadn’t eaten in two days,” said Haug. “And my buddy and I were both lifeguards, so our lifeguard training came in, and we helped her and got her back on her feet and sent her home with a meal.”
Haug packs his trailer with non-perishable food items, socks, hats, and his now infamous hot dogs. A quick, simple meal that he can easily prepare for survivors who may not know when they’ll have their next meal. In just three days, Haug’s already helped nearly 3,000 people, more than any of his other disaster recovery trips.
“We went through it [with Sandy], and I had a lot of people help me. That’s why I started this organization,” said Haug. “Because I know those first few days are really, really hard. The big organizations aren’t here yet. I know the Salvation Army got to one church yesterday, but the Red Cross isn’t here yet. FEMA is not here yet. They have little things, but they’re not able to do much because they’re so big. It takes them a while to get rolling.”
He continued: “The people that are coming to us mostly what they’re talking about is the infrastructure. The power lines are down everywhere. Trees. A lot of trees are down. They were very ill-prepared for this. They weren’t ready for a hurricane of this magnitude. And that’s really what the big problem is.
“There’s no electricity. And because there’s no electricity, there’s not a lot of water. So, they’re running low on water, their food’s running out because there’s no refrigeration, so they’re in a pretty bad state right now.”
The nation is beginning to see the full scope of destruction caused by Hurricane Helene across much of the South. The storm made landfall as a Category 4 in Florida’s Big Bend region on Thursday evening and blasted north across Georgia and the Southern Appalachians in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
The storm dropped historic amounts of rain in those areas with record-setting floods, triggering landslides in mountain communities. More than 100 people are confirmed dead. Millions of people remain without power. Many others are unaccounted for because cell service is down throughout most of the region. In addition to relief efforts by federal and state authorities, private citizens are also trying to lend a hand.
The epicenter of Helene’s destruction is in Asheville, North Carolina. That’s where 14 members of New Jersey’s Task Force 1 deployed to help with search and rescue operations, alongside federal and other state authorities.
