Pictures on TV of hurricane's aftermath don't do it justice

Red Cross' Griffith based in flooded Lumberton, NC

Fayetteville Christian School students and staff help clean out Cynthia Quick's flood damaged home, Friday, Oct. 14, 2016, in a Habitat for Humanity neighborhood in Fayetteville, N.C. Over 90 Habit for Humanity homes in Fayetteville were damaged by flooding from Hurricane Matthew flood. (Andrew Craft/The Fayetteville Observer via AP)
Fayetteville Christian School students and staff help clean out Cynthia Quick's flood damaged home, Friday, Oct. 14, 2016, in a Habitat for Humanity neighborhood in Fayetteville, N.C. Over 90 Habit for Humanity homes in Fayetteville were damaged by flooding from Hurricane Matthew flood. (Andrew Craft/The Fayetteville Observer via AP)

Disaster relief operations in the wake of Hurricane Matthew will continue well after Thanksgiving.

That was the message from Dave Griffith, Capital Area Red Cross Chapter director, who has been working with local and state officials in North Carolina to see what the Red Cross can do to help. After 10 days down there, Griffith is scheduled to be back in Mid-Missouri by the end of the week.

Talking by phone Tuesday, Griffith has been in Lumberton, North Carolina, which is southwest of Fayettville on I-95.

"It's one of the harder-hit areas," he said. "You drive and run into one street detour after another. One man died here, and at the height of the disaster, there were 1,300 people in shelters. That's down now to 618.

"The schools have been used for shelters, but plans have been announced to try and have classes again starting Monday so we're trying to find alternative shelters. Power wasn't restored fully until Sunday. And water came back Monday, but there is still a boil order.

"Pictures you see on TV just don't do it justice."

Griffith said monetary donations are always the best way to help those affected in such large disasters as hurricanes. He said they honor the donor's intent on checks. Marking on the memo line that it should be designated for hurricane Matthew relief means the money will go there. If you want to donate it to the local chapter, you can put disaster relief and the money will be used where it's best needed.

Local donations can be mailed after Saturday to the Red Cross, 435 E. McCarty St., Jefferson City, 65101, or go to redcross.org and click on the donations tab.

"This is going to be a long-term recovery that will take several months," Griffith said. "When you go into the shelters, you look into the faces of the people and many are the less advantaged. They are the ones affected the most because they don't have a Plan B, and they don't know what to do.

"The flooding here is like what we saw in Jefferson City in 1993. The water got to places it had never gotten to before, and it was more than what the infrastructure could handle."

Previous coverage:

Griffith shifts locations in Matthew response