Carolinas CUs: Prepared for the Worst, Hoping for the Best
To assess damages and reopen branches, executives can only watch and wait until the slow-moving Hurricane Florence leaves.
“We are prepared for the worst, but we are hoping for the best,” Leigh Brady, executive vice president of organizational development for SECU, said after Hurricane Florence made landfall near Wrightsville Beach, N.C., at 7:15 a.m. Friday with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph.
Brady reported the $38 billion SECU based in Raleigh closed 73 branches up from 27 it had already shut down just two days ago.
SECU, like many credit unions in North and South Carolina, have been preparing ahead of the life-threating hurricane for days. All they can do now is watch and wait until the slow-moving storm clears before deciding to reopen branches.
As of early Friday afternoon, Hurricane Florence dumped up to 20 inches of rain across portions of the North Carolina coast, while hurricane-force winds knocked out power to more than 500,000 customers in both states. Some areas of North and South Carolina may get up to 40 inches of rain.
And on top of all this, the National Weather Service issued tornado warnings Friday for some areas in North Carolina.
Brady said it might be at least two days before management teams will be able to safely inspect branches.
Although many credit unions reported their online and mobile banking services were operational Friday, at least one cooperative, the $721 million Marine Federal Credit Union in Jacksonville, N.C., reported all of its systems were temporarily down.
SECU advised members ATM availability may be limited based on local conditions and call wait times to 24/7 member services may take longer than normal.
Although most credit unions didn’t close shop until Thursday or Friday, a few cooperatives have been shut down since Tuesday. The Carolinas Credit Union League listed at least 30 credit unions that reported branch closures.
Many credit unions posted on their websites that they plan to assess on Sunday whether they will be able to reopen branches on Monday.
Once the storm eventually clears, Joe Mecca, vice president of the $3 billion Coastal Federal Credit Union in Raleigh, N.C., offered sage advice for members.
“Hopefully, the majority of members will get through Hurricane Florence without significant damages,” Mecca wrote in a blog post Thursday. “However, we know two things: hurricanes always cause some damage and fraudsters are quick to follow the path of the storm.”
Mecca provided useful tips from Coastal FCU Mortgage Servicing Manager Kevin Hall who recommended that members file a claim with their insurance company as soon as possible, document the destruction, try to limit further damage, never hire just any contractor, get several estimates, do your homework and pay with a credit card or check to create a paper trail.