Pray: Sally Turns Deadly with Record Rainfall Turning Roads to Rivers as It Bears Down on Deep South

Jenna Browder : Sep 17, 2020
CBN News

"Evacuations could be in the thousands..." -Sheriff David Morgan of Escambia County, Florida

[CBN News] The remnants of Hurricane Sally, now downgraded to a tropical depression, are bearing down on the Deep South, moving slowly as the storm dumps record amounts of rain and leaves behind a trail of destruction. So far, it's blamed for at least one death. (AP Photo-Gerald Herbert /via CBN News)

Streets are now rivers in the Florida panhandle. Hundreds of people have been rescued from their homes, and thousands more are still at risk from Sally's fury.

The super-soaker of a storm made landfall Wednesday as a Category 2 hurricane. With winds over 100 miles per hour it left trees and powerlines snapped like twigs, buildings stripped bare, and a church steeple toppled over.

In places like Pensacola, Florida, where more than two feet of rain were recorded, streets and neighborhoods are completely flooded.

So far there have been hundreds of rescues and thousands of people from Alabama to the Carolinas have been forced to evacuate.

Flood waters move on the street, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, in Pensacola, Florida. Hurricane Sally made landfall Wednesday near Gulf Shores, Alabama, as a Category 2 storm, pushing a surge of ocean water onto the coast and dumping torrential rain. 

"Evacuations could be in the thousands," said Sheriff David Morgan of Escambia County, Florida. "It's going to be a long time before we come out of this thing."

The storm washed out dozens of roads in the region and a chunk of Pensacola Bay Bridge was swept away after a construction barge slammed into it.

And it's not over yet as the flood threat continues inland.

CBN's Operation Blessing is on the ground in the region. 

"What we're looking at for Sally is doing a lot of relief work for non-perishables—water, cleaning kits, supplies along those lines," said Scott Phillips with Operation Blessing. "We're also standing by to assess if we need to help do 'muck and guts' of homes and dry out homes and do any repair work like tarping roofs or debris cleanup."

More help is on the way too as 200 National Guard members have been sent to Pensacola. Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here