A tragedy is playing out in North Carolina, a tragedy riding on the storm waves of Hurricane Florence predicted to make landfall along the coastline within a few days. Some areas have already been declared mandatory evacuation zones, and emergency shelters are being established as quickly as possible in what are deemed to be safe areas. The tragedy is that registered citizens are being informed that they will not be allowed in any shelter that is in a school of any kind or a church that maintains a school or a daycare or any shelter that has children in it.
Registrants from two different counties, Brunswick and Wake, have been told they they will be arrested if they attempt to enter any such facility. Registrants are being told that they may evacuate to the lobby of their local jail. Registrants are being told that they will be separated from family members, including elderly parents and, one would assume, their children. In spite of numerous attempts, no one with any law enforcement or emergency management agency has been able to give NARSOL the name or location of any shelter where registered citizens will be allowed–other than jail lobbies. Wednesday, September 12, NARSOL issued this release demanding that the North Carolina governor order all shelters to admit all persons seeking safety from the storm.
