A woman was heavily criticized after complaining about the difficulties of getting a refund for a family vacation she booked in a city ravaged by Hurricane Helene.
The North Carolina woman named Chelsea Russell shared her frustrations in a TikTok video titled, "They won't let us cancel our mountain vacation."
Chelsea had planned to go with her family of six to Hendersonville, North Carolina, for a vacation that cost her $2,500.
Highlights
- Chelsea Russell faced backlash for demanding a refund amidst Hurricane Helene devastation in North Carolina.
- In a TikTok video, Chelsea, who had booked accommodation in western North Carolina, expressed her frustration over the delay in receiving her refund.
- Many netizens found her complaint insensitive given the widespread destruction the hurricane caused in the state.
North Carolina is one of the states most affected by Hurricane Helene, which has also affected Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia after making landfall late Thursday (September 26) from Florida's Gulf Coast.
Image credits: Oberon Copeland/Unsplash
Of the 150 reported deaths from the hurricane, at least 66 are known to have occurred in North Carolina.
Entire communities in North Carolina were left destroyed, and hundreds remain missing across the Southeast.
"We booked a mountain vacation not knowing that a hurricane was going to come and destroy the little town that we're supposed to be going to, and we cannot be refunded," Chelsea said in the video, posted Monday (September 30).
"We are still expected to go on this trip, not knowing if there is damage to the property, not knowing if the place is even accessible, not knowing if surrounding events or attractions were going to be up and running."
Chelsea Russell, who goes by @stay_salty_2290 online, had rented a house in western North Carolina, a state severely affected by the hurricane
Image credits: stay_salty_2290
She continued: "You pay X amount of dollars to go on a vacation... You expect to have a vacation, not try to figure your way around barricades, not worry about what's going to be open."
Chelsea's initial plan was to drive from her home in the eastern part of North Carolina to her vacation spot, located in the west.
The woman said she spent an hour talking on the phone with a worker from property management company Evolve.
"We booked through Airbnb, property management Evolve. You know me, I don't like going through rental companies, and this is a prime example of why," Chelsea added.
Image credits: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post
The worker from Evolve allegedly told her that the company would have to get in touch with the owner of the property before they could make any "executive decisions" about her refund request.
"How do we know the owner doesn't live in the area and isn't stranded themselves?" continued Chelsea, who said she works as a short-term rental host.
"How do we know the owner doesn't live out of state and doesn't even know what the f**k is going on? How do we know that we're even going to hear from the owner?
"So I have five days to cancel this reservation and only get a partial refund. A partial refund, after a $2,500 trip for a week with my family.
"When a natural disaster out of everybody's hands hits, I expect some sort of communication, understanding. Cancel all your reservations and refund your people."
Chelsea was labeled a "Karen" for her complaint, as many users considered her video insensitive in light of the destruction caused by the hurricane
Image credits: stay_salty_2290
Image credits: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post
Chelsea's video was met with backlash online, with many social media users accusing her of being out of touch amid the tragedy and lacking empathy toward the host of the property, who could have been among the victims, as well as the other fatalities from the hurricane.
"After everything that has happened, this woman has some nerve complaining about her vacation!! There are people who have died, lost everything!" one user said.
"Imagine being that self-centered. Wow," another critic wrote.
"Be glad you still have your life and can go on vacation. Nobody could have predicted this hurricane. You can always go on vacation later. People are losing their lives," added somebody else.
"Wow Karen. It was a natural disaster. You'll get your money back. Give them a minute!" commented a separate user, while another netizen wrote, "She should have bought the insurance...... ugh."
Image credits: stay_salty_2290
In a separate clip, Chelsea addressed the controversy surrounding her previous video, insisting that she was fully aware of the hurricane’s impact on the region, which is why she canceled her trip and requested a refund.
"Am I aware that people have lost their lives? That roads are washed away, there's no gas, there's barely any food, there's a lot of devastation, and people are still looking for friends and family members? Absolutely.
"Does it break my heart? It sure does. I live in a coastal town. We deal with hurricanes yearly."
Chelsea insisted that the focus of her complaint was that Evolve reportedly told her they couldn't make any decisions regarding refunds for accommodations in devastated areas without consulting the owners of said properties.
In her video update, she said she's housing a family displaced by the hurricane at one of her rental properties for free.
Watch Chelsea's video below
"Our hearts go out to those impacted by Hurricane Helene. We are supporting owners and guests with the most immediate trips and were delayed in processing Chelsea’s refund, as her trip was scheduled for mid-October. We can confirm that she was refunded as of Monday, September 30th."
Bored Panda has contacted Chelsea Russell and Airbnb for comment.
Over 40 trillion gallons (151 trillion liters) of rain drenched the Southeast United States in the last week from Hurricane Helene, which was described as an "astronomical amount of precipitation" by Ed Clark, head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Water Center in Alabama.
President Joe Biden is expected to travel to North Carolina on Wednesday (October 2) to meet with officials and take an aerial tour of Asheville, AP reported.
