UNITED STATES
Coffee comfort was all that many shops could offer in the aftermath of devastating Hurricane Florence. Hundreds of small-town cafes and coffee shops were inundated during a week of torrential rains that unleased 10 trillion gallons of rain and caused an estimated $38 billion in damage with 42 dead.
Despite 90 mph winds and rain, shops in Myrtle Beach, Wilmington, and Conway, South Carolina, still managed to supply first-responders and residents with gallons of brew.
Denny’s, located in Spartanburg, dispatched truckloads of bacon and hot coffee to the Carolinas. The company’s mobile relief diner (a semi-sized kitchen) offered free breakfast to those in need.
The Convoy of Hope (www.convoy.org/response) delivered 650,000 pounds of products assisting 29,750 people with the help of 886 volunteers.
Shops like the Edenton, N.C., Coffee House, which weathered the storm, set out collection boxes for clothing and food and encouraged donors to contribute to the Hurricane Florence Relief Fund in care of the American Red Cross (www.redcross.org)