The mid-December timeline set by the Corps is a “best-case scenario,” said City Water Resources spokesperson Clay Chandler.
Smart Bets: Hurricane Relief Burger Bash
Music, burgers and storm recovery support are on the menu for the Nov. 3 event at Colfax Creek Farm in Bostic.
Smart Bets: Center for Craft Emergency Relief Fund for WNC Artists
Emergency relief grants are being distributed to impacted artists and crafters within 29 counties on a rolling basis.
Smart Bets: Lake Logan benefit concert and volunteer weekend
A weekend of music and food combines with post-Helene river and lake cleanup efforts in Haywood County.
‘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.
N.C. Legislature’s Helene relief bill contains several health-related measures
The North Carolina General Assembly passed over $604 million in Helene disaster relief on Oct. 24, with $71.4 million earmarked for supporting local health departments, mental health services, disaster nutrition assistance and child care, among other health-related measures.
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.
Small towns find ways to aid businesses suffering financially after Helene
As small towns throughout Western North Carolina face an October without tourists, local nonprofits and community members are finding ways to help financially struggling businesses.
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.
Local couple launch private air force operation to reach rural communities
Since Tropical Storm Helene devastated the region, Taylor Knipp and her fiancé, Adam Smith, have transformed the Harley-Davidson of Asheville dealership in Swannanoa into an ad hoc private air base running daily rescue, reconnaissance and resupply missions to some of the hardest hit areas in Western North Carolina.
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.
From CPP: No place to stay. Helene deepens housing crisis in Western NC.
Asheville and other areas in Western North Carolina already have largely unaffordable housing markets for many residents, and Helene threatens to make the problem worse.
‘Citizen-only voting’ referendum on NC ballot this fall
The General Assembly passed House Bill 1074, which would change the wording of the state constitution to clarify who is allowed to vote in state and local elections, but it requires majority approval from voters.
After Helene, disabled folks and seniors still vulnerable and in need of water in WNC
Every day since Helene, volunteers with Asheville’s Flush Brigade gather at the parking lot of the Gold’s Gym on Fairview Road, disperse buckets, and climb into water tank-laden trucks to check in on different apartment complexes in the city.
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.
From CPP: HCA and nurses union reach contract deal in the midst of disaster response
At a hospital without running water, Asheville’s Mission Hospital and its union of nurses have come to a long-awaited agreement, ratifying a new three-year contract just two weeks after Tropical Storm Helene devastated the city.
In photos: Signs of hope in WNC
Over the previous week and a half, we’ve seen plenty of devastating videos and photographs from the aftermath of Tropical Storm Helene. In Western North Carolina, lives have been lost, homes destroyed, businesses washed away, communities decimated. As a paper, we understand the importance of documenting such events, and will be doing so in future […]
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.
From CPP: Western NC college programs adjust after disruption of Helene
No colleges have reported any injuries or fatalities, though UNC Asheville is still working to account for some of its students. A tree fell on a student-filled residence hall at Lees-McRae college in Avery County, but no one was hurt.
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.”