Because the deadly Hurricane Matthew is expected to hammer Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas over the next few days, nearly 40 credit unions in these states have publicly announced branch closings for Thursday and Friday and Saturday.
Florida Governor Rick Scott signed an executive order declaring a state of emergency for every county in the state as the eye of the hurricane was just less than 200 miles from Florida's coast on Thursday morning. When the storm system reaches the state late Thursday night or early Friday morning, it is expected to gain strength as a Category 4 hurricane, according to national media reports.
Georgia Governor Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency for 30 counties and order mandatory evacuation for six coastal counties Thursday. South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley Wednesday ordered an evacuation of coastal areas in and around Charleston and Beaufort. North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory has not declared a state or emergency or ordered evacuations as of Thursday afternoon though state officials are monitoring the storm's track.
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A Category 4 hurricane, which generates winds of 136 to 156 mph, means there is a very high risk of injury or death to people and can cause catastrophic damage to buildings and homes, according to the Weather Channel.
On Wednesday, the NCUA released a statement urging credit unions in Florida and parts of the eastern seaboard to take steps to prepare for the arrival of Hurricane Matthew.
"We're reminding credit unions and their members to take the necessary precautions to stay safe," NCUA Board Chairman Rick Metsger said. "Even if the storm loses strength, areas in its path should be ready for heavy rains, high winds and flooding. If they haven't already, credit unions should review their disaster recovery plans and be prepared for increased needs for member services. Members also should take steps in case public services and transportation are disrupted, including having cash on hand if their communities lose power and credit union branches and ATMs become unavailable."
As of Thursday afternoon, the following Florida credit unions have publicly announced branch closings: 121 Financial CU, Community First CU, BrightStar CU, Broward Healthcare FCU, Coastline FCU, Connect CU, Container Mutual CU, Coral Community CU, Country FCU, First Coast Community CU, First Florida CU, Gulf States CU, Guardians CU, Hialeah Municipal Employees FCU, Jax Metro CU, JM Associates FCU, Miami Federal CU, Memorial Employees FCU, Power Financial CU, PriorityONE Credit Union of Florida, Sun CU, Tropical Financial CU, USFFCU, VyStar CU and We Florida Financial CU. Shared Services for Credit Unions is also closed Thursday, according to the League of Southeastern Credit Unions.
In South Carolina, the following credit unions publicly announced branch closings: Carolina Trust FCU, Carolinas Telco FCU, Heritage Trust FCU, Georgetown Kraft CU, Marine FCU, Grow Financial CU, Safe FCU, Santee Cooper CU and South Carolina FCU.
In Georgia, the following credit unions publicly announced branch closings: Memorial Health CU, Georgia Heritage FCU, Members First CU and Savannah Schools CU.
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Peter Strozniak
Credit Union Times reporter covering credit union operations, fraud, M&As, leagues, business continuity, and breaking news.
