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St. Thomas family takes refuge in Northeast Wisconsin after Hurricane Irma

Posted at 8:14 PM, Sep 12, 2017
and last updated 2017-09-12 21:14:29-04

A family of five has temporarily relocated to Northeast Wisconsin after their community was turned upside down following the destruction left in Hurricane Irma's wake.

The Ambrose family is from St. Thomas. Three days before Hurricane Irma hit Florida, it devastated the island.

In the Caribbean alone at least 30 people were killed when Irma, one of the largest hurricanes ever reported, swept through.

On the island of St. Thomas, with a population of about 60,000 people, neighbors were forced to hunker down without a way to escape.

"This storm was a big storm, there was no time to evacuate," said Amber Ambrose. "There is no way to get 60,000 people out of harms way."

Ambrose was raised on the island, and she, her husband and their three kids were as prepared as they could be. However, they didn't realize just how strong the storm would become.

"We spent almost 4-5 hours hunkered in our bathroom, no electricity," Ambrose said. "It sounds like a freight train overhead. The walls shake, the children go in the bathtub. I can almost guarantee in every bathroom on St. Thomas children are in the bathtub, adults are braced against the door and you ride it out for hours like that."

After Irma passed, nothing could prepare Ambrose for what she'd see next.

"When you open that door you don't know if there is going to be walls, trees,"  she explained. "When you open your front door, you don't know if your neighbors roof is blocking your front door. Standing in your front yard and it doesn't look like anywhere you've ever seen before."

Ambrose, her three children and her mother left St. Thomas after she realized how difficult it would be to take care of her kids without electricity, water or even a hospital that's open.

Ambrose said she hopes by sharing her story, people living in the continental U.S. will realize how big of an impact the storm had on thousands of lives on the United States Virgin Islands.

To donate to the Virgin Islands Relief Fund, visit the YouCaring site started by Tim Duncan here.

 

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