After dominating news headlines in the beginning of October, Hurricane Matthew is now an afterthought to most of us. Although we followed what happened during the hurricane, what was its lasting aftermath?

Several southeastern states, including Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, were hit by Hurricane Matthew, but the damages can be felt even here in our St. Dominic community. Senior Marilyn Schneider’s grandparents live on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina, and her mom, Mrs. Kitty Schneider, traveled there to help handle hurricane damage.

“Many people’s houses, boats and businesses were destroyed. A lot of these people’s livelihoods depend on tourism, fishing and golfing, and this time of the year is when they make a lot of money with that type of business. A lot of people were put out of their jobs, though, because restaurants, golf courses and fishing boats were destroyed,” said Mrs. Schneider.

Hurricane Matthew caused over $10 billion in wind and storm damage in the United States. With the cost of water damage and business and tourism interruption, the total economic cost of the hurricane rivals the $70 billion worth of damage caused by Super Storm Sandy in 2012 on the East Coast.

The damage to the U.S., however, is only a fraction of the destruction Hurricane Matthew produced in Haiti. The hurricane left at least 1,000 people dead, and some parts of the country were completely leveled.

Hurricane Matthew created a devastating impact that will take years to recover from. Many people remain displaced and jobless, with their homes and businesses ruined. Our thoughts and prayers are with these people as they undertake the rebuilding process. We can help Hurricane Matthew’s victims by donating money to the Red Cross, Salvation Army or Catholic Relief Services.