Flag Shredded By Hurricane Florence Sells For $10,900 On eBay
WILMINGTON, N.C. (CBS SF) — The U.S. flag captured on a live camera as it was being torn to shreds by Hurricane Florence was bought for $10,900 at auction.
News outlets report viewers watched the flag flying on the Frying Pan Tower get ripped apart as the storm reached the North Carolina coast last month.
Bay Area based EBay Inc. said 25 people bid 96 times for the flag. It's not known who made the winning bid.
Richard Neal, who bought the lighthouse in 2010 and is the primary owner, told CNN he came up with the idea of an auction after the attention the weather-beaten flag received online.
Neal said that as the storm was nearing, he received calls — including calls from upset veterans — about why the flag was not taken down. Frying Pan Tower later announced on its Facebook page the flag was going to be retired and replaced.
"Everyone loved the idea that it was being auctioned," Neal said, adding that after some debate, it was decided the money should go to the Hurricane Florence relief efforts of the American Red Cross.
Firefighters from the Los Angeles area headed to the East Coast last month to assist fellow first responders.
The Los Angeles Fire Department sent 16 members of the FEMA California Task Force One, Urban Search and Rescue Team to Bowling Green, Virginia, according to LAFD's Amy Bastman. Los Angeles County Fire Department firefighters and FEMA California Task Force Two deployed a 16-member swift water rescue team to Raleigh, North Carolina, the department said in a statement.
Members of the Orange County Urban Search and Rescue Task Force will send swift water rescue personnel and equipment to Virginia, according to the Orange County Fire Authority. It's unclear how many of the 80 members who make up the task force will be deployed.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)