The ABA Jnl reports
Continuing coverage: Courts in the Carolinas and Virginia are announcing closings as a downgraded but still dangerous Hurricane Florence made landfall Friday morning in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina.
Disaster Response Resources
ABA Resources
• ABA Committee on Disaster Response and Preparedness
• ABA YLD Disaster Legal Services Program
Volunteering Opportunities
North Carolina attorneys can find info on volunteering on the North Carolina Bar‘s Hurricane Florence page.
South Carolina attorneys can volunteer for the South Carolina Bar‘s disaster relief legal service hotline by filling out this form.
Not licensed in those states but looking to donate your time or money? Check out ambar.org/DisasterRelief.
ABA Journal Coverage
Hurricane Heroes: From the February 2018 issue
Legal community meets relief challenges after hurricanes Harvey and Irma
ABA mobilizes aid to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
Social media unites lawyers to help those in need
Podcast: Disaster response attorneys share tips
For our latest natural disaster coverage, click here.
Disaster Helplines
The Disaster Distress Helpline (DDH) is a national hotline dedicated to providing year-round disaster crisis counseling. This toll-free, multilingual, crisis support service is available 24/7 via telephone (1-800-985-5990) and SMS (text ‘TalkWithUs’ to 66746) to residents in the U.S. and its territories who are experiencing emotional distress related to natural or man-made disasters.
For low-income individuals with disaster-related legal needs, the following phone numbers are available:
North Carolina residents: 1-833-242-3549
South Carolina residents: 1-877-797-2227 ext. 120
As of Friday afternoon local time, courts in 73 of the state’s 100 counties are closed or scheduled to close, the North Carolina Judicial branch reports. Judicial branch tweets listed here indicate that affected courts will be closed through Friday, and courts and offices in some counties will also be closed Monday.
Florence was downgraded to a tropical storm late Friday afternoon, according to the National Hurricane Center. A forecast map shows that the storm is expected to weaken as it continues to move inland across northern and central South Carolina, western North Carolina and into the Ohio Valley. The New York Times reports four people died, including a mother and infant, as a result of the storm.
A tweet from the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center says parts of the Carolinas could receive 40 inches of rain.
South Carolina’s chief justice, Donald Beatty, warned of possible closings of government offices, including courts. Beatty said county chief judges could direct that certain matters go forward despite closures or delays, and should conduct bond hearings at least once a day, if conditions are safe to do so.
Judges assigned to counties operating as normal should be flexible in granting continuances to attorneys and parties who experience personal issues caused by the weather conditions that prevent their appearance in court, Beatty said.
