Opinion: Next time we’re threatened by a storm, try to not overreact

Now that we are well past the buildup and —fortunately for us — anticlimax of Hurricane Irma’s impact on our area, we can step back and reflect on that potentially stressful weather event and how we handled it.

The nation’s attention was still on Hurricane Harvey and the devastation it caused in and around Houston and indeed, residents here were deeply involved in fundraisers and various other outreach missions when suddenly we were potential storm targets, too. Anyone already anxious over the threat of Irma couldn’t have felt any better after seeing satellite photo comparisons showing how the 400 mile-wide hurricane dwarfed mega storms like Hurricanes Andrew and Hugo, the latter of which battered York and Lancaster counties, leaving some residents without power for weeks.

Forecasters kept anyone paying attention to Irma’s track informed of her every turn and feint and you could practically hear the alarm bells go off when the storm hit the magic number 5, as in category 5, with gusts up around 200 miles an hour. One model a couple of days before Irma went ashore in Florida predicted she would come right through here. No one should feel ashamed for being concerned and taking precautions.

However, things may have gotten a little out of hand.

We all may have laughed at the posts and tweets showing empty grocery store shelves, dry gas pumps and the mad dash to buy that last generator or battery, but consider this: Were stores simply unprepared and understocked, or was there some serious hoarding going on? We suspect the latter as reports rolled in of SUVs packed with every case of water that would fit behind the front seats and whole shopping carts piled high with toilet paper.

It would be understandable for some people, especially those who lived through Hugo, to comfort themselves by having an ample supply of essentials to ride out the storm, but there’s such a thing as going too far. Even if we were socked hard by Irma, this isn’t 1989; Recovery would not have taken as long now as it did then, after Hugo. And hoarding more than a reasonable cache of supplies only means someone else in the community was denied some bare essentials.

On the flip side, many residents looked out for one another and more than a few took in evacuees from the S.C. Low Country, Florida and other regional states that were punished by Irma. Two neighborly standouts who deserve special recognition are Cliff Nichols, a Tega Cay photographer, and Bowzee Wowzee, a Fort Mill pet grooming and boarding business.

Nichols, who buys batteries in bulk wholesale for his business, posted online that he would sell them at cost to anyone who needed them. About a dozen grateful residents took him up on the offer. Bowzee Wowzee boarded evacuees’ pets free of charge. Those are heart-warming displays of generosity that should inspire us all.

Other members of the community also came through for their neighbors in countless ways. If you’re one of them, you know it and we all appreciate you.

This latest storm threat won’t be the last time we’re tested. There could more hurricanes before the season ends and even later. A catastrophic snow and ice storm could paralyze us this coming winter. No matter what’s thrown our way, let’s remember to stay calm, don’t overreact and look out for each other the way Cliff Nichols, Bowzee Wowzee and all the unsung heroes did last week.

And if you’re one of those folks who may have overreacted and bought supplies by the case, how about donating a portion to the Fort Mill Care Center?

This story was originally published September 21, 2017 at 4:16 PM with the headline "Opinion: Next time we’re threatened by a storm, try to not overreact."