- NC's cost for Hurricane Helene damage is nearly $60 billion, state says
- State to develop drone program to better respond to disasters like Helene, Florence
- South Carolina residents face deadline to get storm debris out to the curb after Hurricane Helene
- SCDOT to pick up Hurricane Helene debris for a final day in South Carolina
- Hurricane Helene destroyed this county's only hospital. Now, an urgent care facility is caring for the community.
Fayetteville hotels begin welcoming Florida residents escaping Hurricane Ian
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Florida residents traveling up Interstate 95 to flee the wrath of Hurricane Ian have a new micro-website to help them find available hotel rooms and other resources in the Fayetteville area.
The site lists nearly three dozen hotels and motels and their room availability, as well as other hurricane-related resources in Cumberland County. For those traveling with pets, the site can help families find pet-friendly rooms.
Already, cars with Florida tags have been seen parked in hotels at Exit 49 on I-95 in Fayetteville.
Visitor Bureau Manager Randy Fiveash says Florida residents and others in the path of the storm are checking out the site and checking into rooms.
“We launched it on Monday, and the micro-site has really blown up,” said Fiveash.
Fayetteville is not the only city preparing for evacuees. Charlotte Motor Speedway is opening a campground for people escaping the direct path of Hurricane Ian.
Governor Roy Cooper issued a State of Emergency on Wednesday afternoon to allow for farm equipment to be moved out of flood-prone areas, as North Carolina prepares for heavy rain, winds and potential floods.
Florida family escapes to Fayetteville
WRAL Fayetteville Reporter Gilbert Baez bumped into one family that used a new city-launched micro site to find a room.
This isn’t the first time Edgar Duarte, who lives in Tampa, has evacuated from a major hurricane. Duarte and his family found refuge this time in the Baymont Motel off I-95 in Fayetteville – and they found it using the new micro-site.
Duarte remembers evacuating from Hurricane Irma when it made landfall in the Florida Keys as a Category 4 hurricane in 2017.
“I’m scared,” he said.
“There’s flooding that was supposed to happen,” said his wife Jazmine Duarte. “That’s the main reason why we left.”
Byron McNeill, area manager of the Hampton Inn, says he’s seen vehicles coming from Floriday and Georgia.
Evacuating Florida and looking for hotels in NC?
If you’ve traveling north to escape Hurricane Ian’s direct path, here’s the micro-site showing available motel rentals in Fayetteville.
The site is one way the Fayetteville Convention and Visitor’s Bureau area hotels and other businesses in Cumberland County can provide support to those displaced by the storm. The unique micro-site was established with Emergency Management contacts and resources, as well as hotel availability.
They’ve also created a webpage with other hurricane-related resources.
The website will be updated frequently each day throughout the week,