Today was the first day evacuees, specifically residents and business owners, were allowed to return to New Bern, North Carolina, to survey the damage left behind from Florence.

More importantly, it was a day to strategize over what is set to be a long and complicated recovery process. 

These photos pictures are some of what they came back to (for those who left), and for those who stayed it's what they began working on. 

One woman, Rachel Smith, who owns an ice cream shop here called Bear City Fudge Company and chose to ride the storm out, told us, "I'm never doing that again."

She went to check on her business today and says that it's okay, but she's got a lot of clean up to do.

The National Guard is also here posted at checkpoints across the city helping with the response. Police officers on patrol this morning told us they're helping control entry to some of the restricted zones in the city.

City Manager Mark Stephens, speaking at a press conference earlier today, said that more than 4,300 homes were damaged or destroyed and over 300 businesses suffered the same fate.

"Our city has suffered one of the worst storms ever in its 308-year history," he said.