The city and the Corps planned to start testing the system this week, and Asheville Water Resources spokesperson Clay Chandler said it should be operational by Friday.
Author: Asheville Watchdog
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Mission Health permanently shutters Asheville Specialty Hospital
The 34-bed Asheville Specialty included a comprehensive stroke center, dialysis services, physical and speech therapy, and traumatic brain injury rehabilitation, among other services, according to Mission’s website.
Asheville mayor, Buncombe officials among delegation headed to D.C. to appeal for more Helene assistance
The delegation of regional officials traveling to Washington is believed to be unprecedented, but “we have literally never seen a disaster like Hurricane Helene,” Amanda Edwards, chair-elect of the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners, told The Watchdog.
Asheville could have drinkable water by middle of next week, city says
The possibility of drinkable water being restored by Wednesday next week speeds up the timeline by nearly a month. Water Resources estimated earlier in November that the boil water notice could be lifted by mid-December.
Lead detected in seven schools after Asheville water didn’t undergo mitigation process for several weeks
Chandler and Dr. Jennifer Mullendore, medical director for Buncombe County’s Department of Health & Human Services, repeatedly stressed that students were not exposed to lead in drinking water.
Buncombe air quality post-Helene has not been affected greatly by dust, but smoke risk rises, agency says
“What we’re particularly concerned about is the fine particles from open burning that we expect we’re going to see more of,” AB Air Quality Agency Director Ashley Featherstone said.
FEMA to start working with homeowners in flood zones on buyouts of destroyed homes
Local homeowners who lost their homes or sustained serious damage in Helene’s floodwaters can begin applying to a federal program that may buy the home outright, or pay to have it elevated or rebuilt at a higher level.
Ingles reports storm losses up to $55 million
Four stores – in Swannanoa, Morganton, Newland and Spruce Pine – remain closed and are not expected to open for three to nine months.
‘Big week’ ahead for Asheville’s water: Turbidity drops some; curtain installation and upcoming mineral treatment should reduce it more
The curtain installation should take 24 to 36 hours, meaning the mineral application could possibly start by late Tuesday afternoon.
The lives we lost: Fairview landslides from Helene that killed 13 were among worst in North Carolina history
The loss of lives, 13 total, made the Garren Creek landslides among the deadliest in North Carolina history and accounted for the largest cluster of deaths from Helene in Buncombe County, more than one quarter of the 42 in the official count of fatalities.
With stubborn turbidity and concerns about water clarity growing, city amps up testing on the nonpotable water it’s delivering
Water Resources Department spokesperson Clay Chandler spent most of his time at the daily Helene briefing on Wednesday talking about the water testing program, but he said afterward it does not come in response to customer complaints.
Trump makes a campaign stop in devastated Swannanoa to express sympathy to victims of Helene
Following a tour of flood-ravaged Swannanoa on Monday, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump offered his sympathy to storm victims. He also took numerous opportunities to continue to slam recovery efforts by the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA).
The lives we lost: Helene took entire families, couples, children
Asheville Watchdog is bringing you the stories behind the staggering loss of life, the children, parents, grandparents, multiple generations of a single family, all gone in one of the worst natural disasters to hit the mountains of western North Carolina. This is the first installment.
Crashes, drownings, exposure, trees, blunt force: Medical Examiner’s list paints grim picture of causes of Helene deaths
According to the agency, Buncombe County suffered 42 deaths, the highest toll of the 21 counties listed. Yancey County had the next highest, with 11, followed by seven in Henderson County.
Barely 1% of Buncombe structures carried flood insurance, data show
Buncombe homeowners hit hardest by flood damage from Hurricane Helene will likely face enormous costs to rebuild with limited options to pay for it.
A ‘second wave’ of medical issues may slam the region in Helene’s wake, disaster response officials caution
Two weeks after the storm, doctors, health professionals and officials in charge of disaster relief say there could be a second wave of medical concerns affecting hospitals and clinics, and it could be here soon.
Much of the River Arts District looks shattered, but many buildings can be salvaged, property owners, engineer say
Sagging rooflines and toppled cinder block walls are the order of the day in the River Arts District right now, but a development team that owns 11 buildings in the district says nearly all of their buildings are salvageable.
GOP leaders tour area and pledge bipartisan support for recovery
North Carolina’s elected officials pledge federal support while perpetuating some false claims of diverted FEMA funds.
FEMA, strained by second major hurricane in two weeks, says troops will remain in North Carolina
“FEMA is not taking any resources away from ongoing operations here in North Carolina,” spokesman Darrell Habisch told Asheville Watchdog. “We’re providing additional available resources to Florida.”
Asheville area doctors work through challenges to serve patients
by Andrew R. Jones To Dr. Ruchi Moore and her colleagues at Asheville’s Laurel OB/GYN, Hurricane Helene’s onslaught felt like a rerun of the COVID-19 pandemic “plus just an insane snowstorm.” The storm shuttered the practice, leaving patients in crisis, and destroyed one employee’s home. But Moore and her staff plan to reopen today, even […]
Mission CEO Chad Patrick out in ‘restructuring’ effort, replaced by HCA North Carolina president Greg Lowe
The move comes just months after the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services found Mission Hospital to be in immediate jeopardy, the most serious sanction a hospital can receive.