Mountain communities prepare for hurricane season
Asheville, North Carolina – Though the nearest coast is about four hours away, communities in western North Carolina are gearing up for hurricane season. Cynthia Dunn expressed some unease, saying, “I’m a little surprised because I don’t know if the house will be built in a minute or two.”
Almost two years since Hurricane Helen devastated the area, residents in the mountain communities are on alert. Many share that they’ve been left feeling ‘traumatized’ by the impact of the storm, which resulted in over 100 fatalities and significant destruction to homes and businesses.
“We still have nightmares and flashbacks,” Jackie Fenstermacher recounted while sitting with her sister, Cynthia, in Fairview, North Carolina, which is nestled in a valley just outside Asheville. Jackie reflected on her thirty years living in the mountains and noted how she was moving into a new home with her sister at the time Helen struck.
Sadly, much of Jackie’s home is gone. She vividly described the events of September 27, 2024, when waters surged in a nearby stream, bringing logs crashing into her house. It felt to her, as she put it, “like my house had been bombed.”
After the chaos, she did what she could, putting her sister and their dog into bed, only to find themselves trapped when the structure collapsed.
Two days later, rescuers located them buried under the rubble.
Since the storm, the sisters have been moving between temporary accommodations like FEMA housing, campers, and cabins, including a hut on their property that offers limited shelter. They’ve recently found an Airbnb through local relief organizations as they work to fund a new home.
Celestiel Balson, a case manager from Divine Disaster Relief, mentioned the ongoing struggle for many in the area. “We’re all still catching up and coming up with solutions,” she said, highlighting that numerous people remain in temporary housing situations.
Jackie and Cynthia, both deeply affected by Helen’s aftermath, prefer not to live on their own property anymore, as the sound of rain triggers painful memories. “I’m kind of freaking out because I don’t know if the house will be built in a minute or two,” Cynthia noted.
As the region prepares for the upcoming season, concerns linger. Timothy Love, Buncombe County Assistant Manager, cautioned that while many had thought themselves immune to such storms, history suggests otherwise. To bolster preparedness, the county recently approved plans to convert an old J.C. Penney building at the Asheville Mall into a new emergency operations center, emphasizing the necessity for efficient communication across local, state, and federal lines during crises.
While it may take years for the new center to fully open, it promises to integrate various emergency services, ensuring the community is better equipped to handle future disasters.
