Flomaton Family Sleeping in a Tent After Isaias Sends Oak Tree Through Their Home

FLOMATON, Ala. — When Morgan King first pulled up to her family’s home on Welka Road after Hurricane Isaias, she let herself feel relieved. From the front, the house looked like it had come through the storm in decent shape. Then she realized something was missing from the skyline behind it: the giant oak tree that had stood at the back of the property.

The oak had come down squarely across the middle of the house, crushing the bedroom that belonged to her 8-year-old son, Wyatt. Now the Flomaton family home is unlivable, and the family has been sleeping in a tent while they figure out what comes next.

“It was almost kind of a relief because from the front it didn’t really look too bad,” Morgan King said. “And then I noticed there was something missing. The big giant oak tree. And I come around the corner, and it was just I couldn’t breathe.”

A tree through a child’s bedroom

King lives on family property with her husband, her son and her father. No one was inside when the tree fell, a fact the family counts as the one piece of good luck in an otherwise devastating week.

The oak landed directly on Wyatt’s room, destroying nearly everything he owned. For Wyatt, the loss is about more than furniture and toys. It is the only home he can remember.

“It’s just very heartbreaking,” Wyatt said. “Like, I’ve lived in there, like, as long as not to, I can’t remember. It’s just. It’s so heartbreaking. Like, to see my home destroyed.”

The family said it is still working out the next steps, from dealing with the wreckage to finding a more permanent place to stay than a tent in the yard.

Neighbors step in

Morgan King said the Flomaton community has rallied around the family, providing resources to help them get through the next several weeks. People have also brought items specifically for Wyatt, she said, to help him keep his spirits up while so much of what he had is gone.

That kind of neighbor-to-neighbor help has been a constant across Escambia County since Isaias. In nearby Brewton and East Brewton, residents have shown up with chain saws, tractors and generators to clear streets alongside city crews, and church and relief groups have set up meal sites and supply distributions. The Salvation Army served meals in Flomaton early in the recovery, according to state emergency officials.

How Isaias hit Escambia County

Isaias made landfall near Destin, Fla., late Friday, Oct. 9, as a Category 2 hurricane, then moved north through South Alabama. Although its center crossed the coast well east of Mobile Bay, the storm’s strongest winds raked a corridor that ran from the Florida Panhandle north through Escambia, Conecuh and Monroe counties in Alabama.

Escambia County saw winds of up to around 100 mph late Friday night, officials said. Thousands of trees came down across roads, power lines and homes. Brewton, the county seat a short drive northeast of Flomaton, has been called the hardest-hit community in Alabama, and outages in rural parts of the county have lingered for days.

Large, mature trees like the King family’s oak are a common source of damage in inland hurricanes. Rain-soaked soil loosens root systems, and sustained winds and gusts can topple even healthy trees. Officials have warned that weakened trees can keep falling for days after a storm passes; in Brewton, neighbors said a house on Poplar Avenue was damaged Monday, three days after Isaias, when another tree came down.

Help for Flomaton families with storm damage

Escambia County is included in the federal emergency declaration President Donald Trump approved on Oct. 9 for Mobile, Baldwin and Escambia counties and the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. That declaration helps state and local governments with emergency response costs. Direct aid to individual households through FEMA generally requires a separate major disaster declaration that includes Individual Assistance, which follows damage assessments submitted by the county and state.

In the meantime, residents dealing with damaged homes have several options:

• Call 211. The state is directing residents with unmet needs to the 211 helpline, which connects callers with local relief resources.
• Request cleanup help. Samaritan’s Purse is coordinating volunteers in the Brewton area for debris removal, chain saw work and temporary roof tarps for people with little or no insurance. Visit its mobile unit on Belleville Avenue in Brewton, between First Baptist Church and the Escambia County Courthouse, or call 833-747-1234 and press option 4.
• Pick up supplies. The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office has been delivering water and tarps to distribution sites, and the Escambia County EMA will announce additional distributions as they are scheduled.
• Contact your insurer. Report damage as soon as possible, and photograph the home, the fallen tree and damaged belongings before cleanup begins.
• Keep records. Save receipts for temporary housing, tarps, food and other storm-related expenses in case they can be reimbursed later.
• Watch for scams. Be cautious of unlicensed contractors who go door to door after storms, and remember that FEMA does not charge to apply for assistance.

Staying safe around fallen trees

Removing a large tree from a damaged house is dangerous work. Safety officials recommend leaving trees that rest on structures or tangle with power lines to professionals or trained volunteer crews, staying out of rooms beneath damaged roofs, and treating any downed wire as live. Generators should run outdoors only, far from doors and windows, to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.

For the King family, the work of rebuilding is just starting. For now, they are taking it one night at a time, in a tent in the yard of the home where Wyatt grew up.