HUD Secretary to Matthew victims: 'help is on the way'

Akilah Davis Image
Saturday, February 10, 2018
Dr. Ben Carson tours Hurricane Matthew-ravaged areas
Dr. Ben Carson was in Cumberland County to visit areas still affected by Hurricane Matthew.

FAYETTEVILLE, NC (WTVD) -- HUD Secretary Ben Carson is headed back to Washington after touring areas hardest hit by Hurricane Matthew in Fayetteville.

This was the former presidential candidate's first time in Fayetteville since Matthew hit.

"I want my money! I want my money," said Quancidine Dribble, who lives in Hollywood Heights, a community devastated by Matthew. "I want the money for my house so I can relocate. It's the first time in my life I've seen the water engulf houses. It's left mold, puckered wood and destroyed drywall."

Dribble, like her neighbors, often wonders what is taking the federal government so long to release funding to Matthew victims. It's a question city councilman Larry Wright is frustrated by as well.

"It's very, very frustrating. It's one of the older communities in Fayetteville," Wright said. "A lot of military retirees."

After his tour Friday, Carson stood before a small crowd proclaiming disaster relief is coming for hurricane victims.

"I would say help is definitely on the way and it's going to be coming a lot quicker than it would have been coming before," Carson said.