Rangers outfielder Evan Carter is rehabbing from a hip injury that cost him most of the season and plans to remain in Dallas this offseason. But the aftermath of Hurricane Helen didn’t leave him with many options.
For the past two winters, Carter’s rented home near his hometown of Elizabethton, Tenn., was washed away by flooding as Hurricane Helen swept through eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina. Carter said his immediate family and his wife Kaylen’s family were the luckiest in the area, although they only lost power and water for “a few days.”
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The communities of Irwin and Unicoi, located about 30 minutes south of Elizabethton, were devastated. Floods swept away 11 people working at a plastics factory in Irwin. Only five of them were rescued, according to the Associated Press. At least two people were confirmed dead. In Unicoi County, where Unicoi is located, 54 people were rescued from the roof of a hospital. As of Friday afternoon, 11 people in Tennessee were confirmed dead and 27 people were missing due to flooding.
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Hurricane Helen destroys bridges along Interstate 26. Friday, October 4, 2024 in Irwin, Tennessee. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)(Jeff Roberson/AP)
“People have lost everything,” Carter said Friday. “I was talking to my grandparents, who are in their 70s, and none of them had ever seen anything like this. You hear a lot about hurricanes and the devastation they cause, but it’s hard to imagine something like this coming from where I’m from.” When it hits their hometowns, the damage is even worse. People can’t even find their homes because the mountainside has collapsed.”
Carter plans to return home next week to help raise money in the community that is home to former Cowboys tight end and current Liberty Christian football coach Jason Witten. Proceeds from the sale of his popular “Jesus Won” T-shirts will be donated to the community next month. The shirts can be purchased through his church, Central Christian Community Church, but Carter said he doesn’t need the cash right away. Carter said donations can also be made to the Red Cross.
“People don’t need money right now, they need necessities,” he says. “They need diapers, baby food and water. They are stranded. They have nowhere to go.”
In addition to Carter, Rangers relief pitcher David Robertson is also trying to help families affected by the flooding. Robertson, a native of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, founded his charitable foundation after his hometown was hit by a tornado in 2011.
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