Mayor of New Bern, N.C.: 'We're Going to Get Through This'
*By Madison Alworth*
As the remnants of Florence make their way north, causing tornadoes in Virginia, the devastation to the Carolina coast is just beginning to be understood. One of the areas most affected was New Bern, NC. The city is completely flooded, and around 4,300 homes have been damaged or destroyed by Florence.
"It's a tough time for New Bern. But we've been here 300 years, we've never let a hurricane get us down, we're not going to let this one," said Mayor Dana Outlaw. The local official joined Cheddar via the phone to give an update from the ground.
Since the storm made landfall, 455 people have had to be rescued from the flood waters in New Bern. "The top priority continues to be safety and security for our citizens," said Outlaw.
Residents are being encouraged to stay out of town as clean up efforts are underway, and there is no clear sense of when people will be able to return to their homes.
"Let's wait for the governor to say it's time for eastern North Carolina residents to return, because it's not there yet," said Outlaw.
Getting the city back up and running will be a group effort. During her Cheddar interview, Outlaw was outside an office where North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper and other state officials were meeting. New Bern and cities like it will turn to state and federal groups and agencies like FEMA, as well as everyday individuals for help.
"My daughter from Bethlehem, NC, is bringing three truckloads of blankets and things. It's that type of community involvement, and North Carolina and United States involvement, that is going to get us back quick," said Outlaw.
However the mayor did stress the severity of the situation. According to New Bern city manager Mark Stephens, damage estimates are as high as $6 million for the city. The danger and work is not over yet, and Mayor Outlaw hammered home that point.
"Remember everybody out there, sometimes folks die after a storm, not during it."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/mayor-dana-outlaw-of-new-bern-nc-gives-update-on-florence-flooding).
Activism is growing around the country in response to school boards banning books from shelves that focus on sexuality, gender, identity, or race. Jen Cousins, co-founder of The Florida Freedom to Read Project, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
A recent study has found that young people's mental health worsens as they go through their teenage years, with the wellbeing of adolescent girls the most severely impacted. Simone Alicia, creator of The Self Esteem Doctor Academy, joins Cheddar News to discuss how to raise self esteem among this age group.
Cristyl Kimbrough, real estate attorney and star of 'Ladies Who List: Atlanta,' joins Cheddar News to discuss her new show on OWN and breaking into Atlanta's luxury real estate space.
Carl Tobias, professor of law at the University of Richmond, joins Cheddar News to talk about how Johnson & Johnson funded experiments on mostly Black men comparing the effects of talc and asbestos on their skin.
Amazon unveiled its new mobile app called Amp as a direct competitor to Clubhouse, allowing people to host live radio shows. Although it is still in beta, users can join the waitlist from the iOS store.
The war in Ukraine continues to reveal heartbreaking gut-wrenching stories. The war in itself is not only devastating but also expensive. Experts estimate that Russia is draining nearly $20 million dollars each day to continue occupying and invading Ukraine. All this could force the country to turn to cryptocurrencies. It's a major turn for the country that briefly considered outlined digital assets entirely, but it could also have serious implications for cryptos. Managing Director at Quantum Fintech Group, Harry Yeh, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
As Russia intensifies its war on Ukraine, President Biden announced a ban on oil imported from the aggressor nation. Critics of Russia have said this would be the best way to force Putin to pull back, but curbs on Russian oil exports are expected to send already skyrocketing oil and gas prices even higher, further impacting consumers, businesses, financial markets, and the global economy. Leslie Beyer, CEO of the Energy Workforce and Technology Council, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss. "It's certainly going to increase pricing, but it is the right thing to do," she said. "The industry itself has already pulled out of the significant portion of its operations in Russia."
On International Women's Day, we should not only focus on the women who came before us but but also the women doing the work today for a better tomorrow. Ms. James, also known as @iamthatenglishteacher on TikTok, is an Arkansas teacher who took her talents to the video-sharing app to expand her classroom from four walls to the world! She joins Cheddar News to discuss her love for teaching.
