By Tim Gardner
The long recovery continues from what’s being called the worst catastrophe ever in the North Carolina High Country, including in the 113-year history of Avery County (founded in 1911).
No one in this area has ever seen anything like this.
Hurricane (Tropical Storm) Helene was predicted to bring significant flooding to the North Carolina High Country, but it delivered far more inches of rain than expected. It’s hard to fathom how much destruction has been wrought in the region.
Upwards to 31 inches of rain fell over Avery County and other parts of the High Country on September 25, 26, and 27 with winds at times over 60 miles per hour.
Although not as bad as in the North Carolina mountains, Hurricane Helene also devastated places in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. Damages to all areas combined it struck have been estimated to be in the tens of billions of dollars.
Hurricane Helene is reportedly responsible for 230 deaths, making it the deadliest hurricane to strike the United States mainland since Katrina in 2005. Dozens of those deaths occurred in North Carolina and at least four have been confirmed in Avery County, according to its Sheriff, Mike Henley. Three persons are confirmed missing in the county too as of October 11, Sheriff Henley added.
Various Avery County Government agencies have had to temporarily relocate to other facilities due to flooding and mud in their offices. Those include staffs from the Country Administration Building, Department of Social Services (DSS), Senior Citizens Center, Daymark Recovery Services, and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Newland base.
County officials have also announced that the Avery County Court House and Health Department, both in Newland, are open and that the Department of Social Services has temporarily relocated to the Avery Morrison Library at 150 Library Place in Newland.
To also obtain more information from Avery County Government about Hurricane Helene’s recovery efforts as well as to determine the specific locations of the other facilities besides the DSS listed above, call the County Manager’s office at 828-733-8201.
A Facebook social media page about “Help for Avery County After Helene” has been established and can be accessed online at:
https://www.facebook.com/help.for.avery.co.nc.after.helene
Scientists have declared that Helene’s rare colossal intensity was escalated by the warming of the seas caused by climate change. But the North Carolina mountains almost always escape the worst of passing hurricanes, which usually inflict their greatest damage in low-lying coastal and other far Eastern and Deep South areas.
But this tropical weather system crippled North Carolina‘s mountains — having wiped out or almost wiped out whole or parts of towns and communities, inundating normally impenetrable areas and handicapping the communications and transportation infrastructure.
Many Avery residents were completely cut off from the outside world for several days, stranded in their homes without adequate food, landline and cellphone service, and Internet service. Some were also left without a sufficient supply of their needed medication. Several even lost their homes that were destroyed or even uplifted from their foundation, torn apart, with pieces floating down rivers, creeks, or streams.
Rescue teams arrived, with many from not only local agencies, but some as far away as upper New York, Arizona, and many other states across America, as well as from the Piedmont, Eastern, and Coastal parts of North Carolina. And behind them, a steady stream of backhoes, trackhoes, bulldozers, electric and telephone bucket trucks, and supply and related vehicles for them to use in the recovery process.
Crews have been working from dusk to dawn to reopen roads that were left under piles of mud from the flooding and landslides and broken chunks of asphalt by the power of fast-flowing water. Those work crews have also been repairing bridges that were partially torn apart or installing new ones to replace those that were destroyed. However, transportation remains limited in some areas of the county.
The unprecedented flooding left entire electrical substations underwater in the area. In response, mobile substations were brought to the High Country, including Avery County, to restore power while permanent substations were concurrently rebuilt.
Hundreds of miles of damaged power and telephone lines have had to be repaired or are in the process of being repaired, mainly from trees uprooting or breaking off and falling across them, and thousands of broken poles were broken, primarily from the high winds, and had to be, or will be, replaced.
Though many Avery citizens have had electrical, telephone, and Internet services already restored, some with properties in areas that require perplexing or multiple repairs are taking longer to fix. Some customers with properties that are inaccessible or still cannot receive power, telephone, or the Internet may be without such services for an extended period as crews work alongside local, state, and federal agencies to rebuild critical infrastructure. Crews are working to find innovative solutions for these hard-hit locations. 3,906 Avery County Homes remain without electricity as of October 11, according to Avery County Government officials.
There have been many individual and collective acts of heroism to restore critical services during Hurricane Helene, and the determination of communities coming together to support one another in this challenging time has been monumental.
Members of all Avery fire departments and emergency services agencies, county and town law enforcement personnel, county government officials, employees and officials of the county’s public schools, Mayland Community College and Lees-McRae College employees, churches, and hundreds, if not thousands, of county citizens have delivered food, water, medicine, and other needed supplies to people, also including electrical generators for those without electricity. They have also helped others in various ways and as often and as much as possible. Many churches, fire departments, as well as the Avery County Government, county businesses, citizens, and individuals from other places have also set up supply centers and sites, giving away food, hygiene and household cleaning items, other supplies, and providing shelters for those who have needed and still need them.
Donations of food, water, other needed supplies, and money have been brought to Avery County and other parts of the North Carolina Mountains from many businesses and individuals from other sections of North Carolina as well as from other states in addition to local stores, businesses, and individuals donating items.
Flood waters have receded to normal water levels in many rivers, streams, and creeks in Avery County, but some areas are still unapproachable from the destruction Hurricane Helene caused. A Declaration of Emergency in Avery County was declared by its Board of Commissioners on Wednesday, September 25 and the county remains under curfew until further notice from 8:00 p.m. until 5:00 a.m. Fifty-eight (58) injuries have also been confirmed, plus three (3) Emergency First Responders who have also suffered injuries during their recovery efforts, as of October 11.
Additionally, 204 people (also as of October 11) are staying in the two official shelters the county is offering for those who need them. They are located in the Old Rock Gymnasium at 185 Shady Street in Newland and in Best Western Mountain Lodge, located at 1615 Tynecastle Highway, near Banner Elk. The Old Rock Gymnasium is still open for those needing shelter. Best Western is currently full, but shelter vacancies will re-open as those currently taking shelter there can return to their homes. The number of those requiring shelter has been steadily decreasing during the past several days.
Many Avery County businesses as well as its tourist attractions like Grandfather Mountain, the Blue Ridge Parkway, all its public schools, Lees-McRae College, Mayland Community College, including its Avery Learning Center in Newland, also remain closed until further notice.
Avery County Schools Superintendent Dr. Dan Brigman said schools will remain closed until it is safe to return. Although there is no set timeline, the goal is to reopen as soon as possible. Dr. Brigman added that school administrators will provide staff, parents, and students with a 72-hour notice of reopening to give everyone time to prepare.
Lees-McRae College officials have said that until further notice, its employees should perform job responsibilities under modified work arrangements including telework and reassignment of duties. Main campus classes will be conducted online via Brightspace through Fall Break (October 21–22). Decisions regarding the return to in-person classes after Fall Break will be communicated as soon as possible.
Only essential staff approved to work on campus are allowed to do so. Campus facilities remain closed to allow for the repair and sanitation of buildings.
United States President Joe Biden and Vice President and Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris have visited Helene-stricken areas in the North Carolina Mountains and have reaffirmed federal support to help the region recover from the natural disaster. North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson, and State Attorney General Josh Stein also have visited places in the mountains, including in Avery County, as have various other government representatives. Stein and Robinson are running against each other to replace Cooper, whose consecutive terms in the post ends following the 2024 election on November 5.
Following a request from Governor Cooper for more help, President Biden on Sunday ordered 500 active-duty troops into the North Carolina Mountains to support ongoing relief and recovery efforts from Hurricane Helene. The move puts a total of 1,500 soldiers on the ground, supplementing 6,100 National Guard personnel and 7,000 federal workers.
There have been numerous government and private helicopters and other aircraft involved in rescue and aid efforts in North Carolina, though some residents died before they could be rescued and a significant number of residents have remained missing or stranded for days. Some Avery residents remain stranded in their homes and three persons in the county also remain missing as of October 11.
The North Carolina National Guard announced last week that its own air assets had “completed 146 flight missions, resulting in the rescue of 538 people and 150 pets.” A slew of helicopters has become routine across western North Carolina and all of Avery County in the wake of Hurricane Helene. National Guard and civilian aircraft continue to crisscross in the skies of regions where roads and bridges have been destroyed and people remain trapped. The helicopters are delivering supplies, picking up people who need rescuing, dropping off firefighters and search-and-rescue crews, and calling into their headquarters for assistance for others who can be more easily accessed from the ground.
Air traffic over the North Carolina Mountains had increased by 300 percent due to hurricane relief efforts, according to the North Carolina’s Division of Aviation. The state said in an official update last Saturday: “A total of 53 search and rescue teams from North Carolina and beyond, consisting of more than 1,600 personnel have conducted search and rescue operations. Search and rescue teams have interacted with more than 5,400 people, including assists, evacuations, and rescues.”
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) officials have said that more than $137 million in aid has been spread across southeastern states hit by Helene — including nearly $36 million to North and South Carolina.
FEMA representatives are currently visiting various sites and homes in Avery County so individuals and businesses can apply for funding.
As FEMA officials explained on social media and a web page it created to combat misinformation about the response, $750.00 is the immediate, upfront financial aid that survivors can get to cover basic needs like food, water, and emergency supplies. Survivors are also eligible to apply for additional forms of assistance, such as to pay for temporary housing and home repairs, which can be worth many thousands of dollars. The current maximum amount for home repair assistance from FEMA is $42,500.
Those who desire to apply for FEMA aid can log online to: DisasterAssistance.gov. or call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362. They may also apply person at a Disaster Recovery Center. For locations and hours of those, log on to the website: fema.gov/drc.
Those who apply will be asked to provide:
*A description of the damage
*Their address at the time of the disaster
*Their Social Security number and personal contact information
*Their policy number, agent, or company if they have insurance
*Their annual household income
*Their bank account information for direct deposit if funds are granted
Those who have insurance should file a claim as soon as possible. FEMA can’t pay for losses that insurance will cover.
FEMA assistance to individual residents is different from the hurricane-related assistance the federal government will provide to state governments. The federal transportation department announced last Saturday that it was immediately providing $100 million to North Carolina’s transportation department to help pay for the costs of immediate emergency work resulting from Hurricane Helene flood damage. This emergency funding is slated to be followed by additional federal resources.
Sheriff Henley advised that county residents should make sure that any information they share about Hurricane Helene’s effects on the county is accurate and not misinformation. He also said that residents and business owners applying for FEMA assistance or from any other related organization should request to see identification or other credentials from their agents to avoid any potential scams that may be happening following the hurricane.
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