Social Media Helps Locate Virgin Islands Irma Survivors
BOSTON (CBS) -- A chilling Facebook post written on a pizza box listed the names of people seen alive on the U.S. Virgin Islands since Hurricane Irma went through.
That post only adds to the reality of the devastation left behind by Hurricane Irma
The concern is many are still missing, and on the site St. John Roll Call, their names are posted as well.
"Have you seen this person, looking for my friends Chuck and Jill," reads Julie Slodden, now living in Massachusetts but who grew up on St. John.
She is clinging to the social media site that's banding people together for help in the wake of the devastation from Hurricane Irma that tore roofs off homes and flattened others. The hope is the missing are in areas that are now inaccessible.
And the news isn't any better with hurricane Jose not far off.
"The island is already devastated. They need to get supplies to these people," said Slodden.
Jonathan Mongie's 83 year old father Henry made it to the concrete basement of an apartment building on the island. But he didn't know that until a strange text finally got through.
"It was a random text from a New Jersey cellphone number with a simple message 'Your Dad ok. As soon as they can contact you they will'," said Mongie. "It was stressful for me to not know my Dad's fate."
A tourist with cell service had sent it, but the news wasn't good because his father's house was also destroyed.
"The word to me was that the roof was off and the walls blown out." From the island's airport to its docks it is suffering the fate of many other islands in Irma's path. The calls for help keep coming.
"It takes your breath away. You can't believe that mother nature could do something like that," said Slodden who is hoping to organize a fundraiser soon to help get supplies to the area.
Officials are still hoping to evacuate people from the islands as soon as it's possible.
