‘Flooded to the Ceiling:’ Keaton Beach church works to recover from Helene

KEATON BEACH­–It was day two of hurricane cleanup at Keaton Beach’s Blue Creek Baptist Church for Pastor Justin Goins and fellow church members when God sent in a cavalry of college men to help them win the battle against the mud, sludge and debris left by Hurricane Helene inside their church.

How else to explain these 32 young men from Florida State University who arrived on Sunday to help the church clean up after Hurricane Helene ravaged and destroyed 90% of the homes located in this Gulf Coast community.

“What a great group of young men who really helped us,” Goins said. “I didn’t get his last name, but Ian and his family attend a Baptist church somewhere in Florida. He got a bunch of guys together to help us out.”

It was the third hurricane to impact the area in 13 months, following Idalia in 2023 and Debby back in August. But Helene was the most destructive. The church was completely flooded almost to the ceiling, meaning everything inside had to be moved out and disposed, including the sanctuary carpet and drywall.

Goins said Ian and the students are part of the Interfraternity Council at FSU. After seeing news reports of the destruction caused by the hurricane, Ian contacted Florida Baptist Disaster Relief leaders and asked how his group of university students could help. They sent the group to Blue Creek Baptist Church.

All the work the FSU students did really helped the church move forward in its recovery efforts. By the end of the day Tuesday, all the mud and drywall had been removed from the sanctuary with only the carpet remaining. They are still working on cleaning up more than half of the church, but getting the sanctuary done was huge, Goins said.

“I am on cloud nine right now because we’re not supposed to be this far ahead,” he said. “They helped us get 90% of the debris out of the church.”

Goins and his wife drove west of Pensacola with their cars and camper to escape the storm but returned late Friday to assess the damage at the church. Goins said the sanctuary reminded him of a snow globe–as if someone shook the globe full of water, then set it down and everything just landed where it landed. The water surge of 10 to 12 feet brought in about 8 feet of water inside the church.

“It was flooded to the ceiling. Everything inside there was just everywhere,” he said.

One of the most amazing discoveries after the storm was to find a wooden cross still standing attached to the stage. Made for a recent sermon series, the four-foot cross was lag-bolted to the bottom of the stage. There were four chain links hanging on separate eye hooks, each representing one of the four people who gave their lives to Christ over the past three weeks. Each link was a connection they had made.

“The cross was the only thing still standing in the whole church. It’s a pretty important thing for my church right now because it helps keep our vision focused through all of this,” he said noting that half of his church members have lost their homes. “It’s like God is saying, ‘Don’t stop connecting people to Me.’”

Goins said he is so thankful for all the support he has received this week, including all the calls, texts and messages from fellow Baptist pastors in Florida, offering encouragement, prayers, financial support and resources.

“One of my videos got shared, and the calls started coming in. From Panama City to Orlando, I’ve been contacted by so many pastors who are wanting to help us and support us and send us supplies and resources,” he said. “They just really made me proud to be part of the Florida Baptist Convention.”

Blue Creek Baptist Church members gathered Wednesday for a prayer service at a park in nearby Perry. They met on Sunday for worship at a pole barn on a church member’s property.

The church had to replace half of its roof after Idalia, which was a Category 3 storm, but did not receive much damage from Debby. Previously the church sent teams out into the community with water and cleaning supplies to help and assist, but this time they are having to focus on their church building. With mud still surrounding much of the church, they were able to set up some donated supplies on a dry spot near the church office entrance on Wednesday.

Florida and its hurricanes are both new to Goins, who has only lived in the state for 14 months. Experiencing this type of disaster can be devastating and depressing for people, but Goins likes to look for the brighter side of things rather than dwelling on the negative. After experiencing three hurricanes firsthand, he likes to jokingly refer to his next-level status.

“I’ve become a semi-pro at hurricanes,” he said with a laugh. “God has opened up a fire hydrant on me in the past year and four months, and I’ve had to drink very quickly and learn hurricane and hurricane relief and how you minister in this. I got kicked into the deep end of the pool on this one, which is fine because I walk with Jesus in it, and you learn each time.”

Although Blue Creek Baptist Church has much work ahead on the road to recovery from Hurricane Helene, Goins is resolute in leading the congregation forward.

“We are looking forward to what God does here at Blue Creek for years to come.”

Photos provided by Blue Creek Baptist Church in Keaton Beach

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