Firehouse Hub coalition to guide long-term recovery in Barnardsville

When the usually 3-foot Ivy Creek rose to more than 15 feet in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Helene, the damage in the northern Buncombe County community of Barnardsville was overwhelming.

“Obliterated is not too strong a word,” local resident Gina Elrod, the Helene recovery initiatives manager for the United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County, told Xpress. “[Many] homes were severely impacted or destroyed. Many more families face damaged land, cars and belongings, and some still can’t access their homes due to broken bridges or washed-out roads. Small-business owners, many who have called this place home for decades, struggle with income loss and expensive repairs.”

In response to the storm, members of a long-standing community coalition stepped in to facilitate out-of-town work crews and coordinate recovery efforts out of the old Barnardsville firehouse. Now, more than six months after Helene, plans are underway to formalize those connections into a think tank, the Firehouse Hub, to develop long-term recovery strategies for the community.

“As the months ticked by and many neighbors waited on FEMA and insurance claims and outside help dwindled, it became evident that more communication and collaboration was needed,” says Elrod, referring to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Elrod also works with the Buncombe County Long-Term Recovery Group, a coalition of local nonprofits, faith-based organizations, government agencies and volunteers dedicated to disaster recovery.

Xpress spoke with Elrod about the Firehouse Hub, its projects and long-term goals.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

Xpress: When did the Firehouse Hub start, and what is its main purpose?

Elrod: The Firehouse Hub is a new name for an old collaboration of Barnardsville neighbors. It’s the friends and extended families looking out for each other. It’s putting a name to what local church people and kindhearted folks out here do to help others. The saying, “If you want something done, ask the busiest person you know,” is proven often in this group. From chicken soup delivery after the flu to replacing essentials after a house fire, these neighbors help. The Firehouse Hub is a loose working title for a collection of community members who show up to support one another. Barnardsville is a small, rural community where country people have been looking after each other for many generations. We are now collaborating as a think tank actively strategizing how best to help neighbors displaced by Hurricane Helene.

Why is it called the Firehouse Hub?

The name Firehouse Hub is twofold. Since Sept. 27, “drinking out of a firehose” is a feeling we, as Helene recovery helpers, can readily identify. Another reason is in honor of the many people who volunteered in the early days of Helene relief at a pop-up mutual aid hub located at the old firehouse in Barnardsville. After owner and longtime community supporter Bob Bowles loaned this space [after the storm], it became home to a remarkable cross-community gathering place, information center and resource distribution hub. Groups from across the United States staged from the old firehouse as they worked throughout the community. Organizers from that mutual aid group are now actively involved in Firehouse Hub work.

There is also a subcommittee in this coalition exploring the feasibility of buying the old firehouse. We would love to secure it, but we’re trying to figure that part out. Decades before Helene hit, the building served as a community center. Many remember and want the return of the farmers market and other community activities at this central location. Along with the still very fresh memories of the community togetherness, inclusivity and efficient work in the weeks after the storm, this group is looking into securing the space as a hub for Helene housing and rebuilding projects, as well as a community gathering space.

Who all is involved with the Firehouse Hub?

Along with the mutual aid recovery volunteers, the Firehouse Hub Steering Committee includes Barnardsville church leaders, generational community members and newcomers. All share a spirit of mutual care and community building among neighbors. The group is, as yet, informal. It’s made up of whoever wants to show up and lend a helping hand.

What are some examples of Helene-related projects the group has engaged in?

The Fireplace Hub team worked in all areas of recovery and is now focused on housing. People in the group have been involved in every aspect of temporary housing, from securing the RVs to the regular deliveries of propane tanks. Thanks to initial efforts of the United Way Asheville and Buncombe County and lots of Firehouse Hub volunteer efforts, an actual home has arrived in Barnardsville for Hurricane Helene survivors the Rev. Charles and Sadey English. Eight churches and small businesses joined together to make this home delivery happen. A church from Georgia has committed to building the steps and porch for the Englishes, so we’re still counting helpers.

Another home for Jerry and Evia Webb also arrived in Barnardsville, thanks to Cajun Navy 2016, and is now being placed and soon filled with furniture by local and out-of-town churches.

What makes Firehouse Hub different is the way local nonchurch and newcomers have joined in so collaboratively, actively, shoulder to shoulder. After Helene, there was a palpable energy throughout Big Ivy demographics to help. Now, that energy is to galvanize towards housing action.