Swannanoa, North Carolina — This site outside Asheville is used by veterans and volunteers to distribute supplies and send out rescue teams, and was once a Harley-Davidson dealership. The store was damaged by historic flooding from Hurricane Helen, but that didn't stop the effort to help those up on the mountain.
A Harley-Davidson store is the perfect location for a supply location, with permission from the owner. Not only is the parking lot large enough to store supplies, but next to it is a field large enough to serve as an improvised airport for helicopters to constantly fly in and out. The dealership has the feel of a forward operating base, with a large number of armed veterans organizing communications, supply deliveries, and staffing.
Blaze Media saw firsthand how people are coming together to help the western part of the state while the federal government's response has been slow at best. Rep. Cory Mills (R-Florida) has been on the ground over the past week working with Mercury One, a nonprofit founded by Blaze's co-founder. glenn beck For disaster response.
An Army veteran, Mills says he has made it his personal mission to help Americans when he feels his federal government is not doing enough. This is why he supported organized rescue operations for American citizens in Afghanistan, Haiti, and Israel.
“It's simple. People need help. People's lives matter. I may be sitting on a beach right now, but helping people is more important,” said Mills, who received supplies from Florida. I spoke on the flight.
Complicating disaster response efforts for victims of Hurricane Helen in western North Carolina, the entire area is cut off by washed-out roads and can only be accessed by plane, on foot or by several hours of trekking on packhorses. .
Problems arose during President Joe Biden's visit to the region on Wednesday, which led to a 30-mile no-fly zone being put in place. Resupply and rescue efforts were put on hold for several hours until restrictions were finally lifted. Biden had previously promised that the trip would not disrupt his mission.
“This is going to go on for months. This is going to go on for a long time.”
Mr Mills criticized the visit as “irresponsible” at a critical time for a region that has been isolated for days. The helicopter flight Blaze Media was on with Mills had completed a resupply flight to Elk River Airport before the no-fly zone was instituted, and we sat on the tarmac for two hours.
Local residents and volunteers conducting their own relief efforts had similarly expressed frustration with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Days after the storm has passed, Federal Emergency Management Agency bureaucracy stands in the way.
While cities like Asheville are stable, the immediate concern is for people living on mountains without power as fall and winter approach. In Pensacola, North Carolina, officials are currently looking for mainly generators, fuel, portable stoves, and tools to repair roads themselves.
“This is going to be going on for months. This is going to be going on for a long time,” Pensacola City Medical Officer Mark Harrison told Blaze Media about the city's recovery.
The last supplies arriving in Pensacola on Thursday included generators, chainsaws, chainsaw oil and fuel.
Friday, Mills announced The new shipment arriving in North Carolina from Florida includes more than 60 generators.
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