While Hurricane Irma has been hundreds of miles away from the Mid-State, its destruction has been felt by people here at home.
Dwayne Peters watched updates of the hurricane on his phone Wednesday afternoon.
His family and friends live on the island of St. Thomas, part of the U.S. Virgin Islands.
He said people in the Caribbean have been used to hurricanes, but even he has been surprised by the destruction caused by Irma.
He spoke to his dad a few hours before he lost communication with him.
"I kept it short and brief. I said, 'Are you okay?' He said, 'Yeah,' and then he was like, 'It sounded like a freight train outside and it was pounding in.' All of the shutters that he put up fell off, glass door broken," Peters said.
Peters said his father was hiding in the bathroom during the call. Rain seeped through the roof and part of the floors in the house were wet from water.
Two homes next to his father's house lost their roofs.
"I just hope everybody just tries to stick together and help each their out. If your neighbor needs help, go ahead and help them out, give them some shelter. I know some of the schools opened up their doors, some of the churches for shelters and stuff," he said.
Hurricane Irma hit the island of St. Thomas as a Category 5 storm.
