When the remnants of Hurricane Helene moved northward from the state of Georgia after landfall occurred in Florida on Thursday, September 26, 2024, they caused catastrophic flooding from the torrential precipitation, which resulted in the deaths of at least 215 people. Stay away from western North Carolina 2024, as the process of recovery has been slow at best.
Stay Away From Western North Carolina 2024: Travel Alert
The main reason why western North Carolina was impacted by the former tropical system is because it was located on the east side of the storm. As hurricanes are actually very strong low pressure systems, they rotate counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere — which means that the winds on the east side of the storm eventually moved from south to north and brought substantial precipitation to the area.
The amount of precipitation proved to be too much for the infrastructure and the topography of western North Carolina, whose hills and mountains channeled the floodwaters through narrow areas and cut off entire towns.
Portions of Interstate 40 have been damaged to the point that they may not be fully repaired for another year, which means that they may not reopen until October of 2025. An official Internet web site of the North Carolina Department of Transportation gives detailed information on roads and highways that were impacted by the remnants of Hurricane Helene — as well as the following warning:
DANGEROUS CONDITIONS IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
There are shortages of water, food, gas, power and communications in western NC.
Access is limited to local and hurricane response traffic.
You cannot get from North Carolina to TN via I-40 or I-26.
There may be closed roads not listed on DriveNC.gov as many areas are not able to report at this time.
People evacuating the Asheville area can use I-40 east or I-26 east.
Access to TN and SC from NC
Social media is filled with photographs and videos of the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
The flooding in Asheville left people trapped in their homes and vehicles.. pic.twitter.com/g1n0VpqFpU
— Huggins🎗️ (@Huggins2687) September 29, 2024
An old Air Force buddy of mine is an EMS worker [firefighter/EMT] in east Tennessee and he messaged me earlier today and his text was basically (paraphrasing):
"saw the videos you've been sharing and that's nothing. Those videos are just from people who are in places with… pic.twitter.com/CKRd8whq1H
— Mrgunsngear (@Mrgunsngear) October 1, 2024
My terrifying trip through Asheville North Carolina during Hurricane Helene French broad river flash flood
I knew things were adrift…(thread)#HurricaneHelene #ashevilleflooding pic.twitter.com/woMA6ukLYZ
— Sean Murphy (@book_sean) October 1, 2024
My heart. 💔Western NC. 😭 Home to Asheville, App State, Blue Ridge Parkway, Appalachian Mountains. Highways gone. Small towns gone. People stranded. Please donate to Red Cross!! 🙏 https://t.co/homKV6HEfo pic.twitter.com/KC9PhsuVrK
— Sarah Perez (@SarahPerezTC) September 28, 2024
Most surreal week of my life. No words for the full-scale destruction. Photo thread 🧵#ashevilleflooding #Helene #ashevillenc 1/7 pic.twitter.com/9458QJ29Fx
— Logan Hibbitts (@UnInHibbitted) October 3, 2024
What my brother actually traversed – in his car!!!! To get his family out. With the ingenuity and help of his son-in-law, Stuart, and my amazing neighbor, Jim.
He doesn’t recommend trying it again.#Appalachia #NorthCarolina #ashevilleflooding pic.twitter.com/U9lPNZxaIS
— Robin L Shoemaker (@ZAxisLife) October 3, 2024
Hidden River Events in Swannanoa, NC, left their animals penned up to die in the floods. They were rescued by a bridal party that was on the property. #Helene #ashevilleflooding pic.twitter.com/rsz7RXG9es
— Kim Wexler's Ponytail 🐝💛🎗 (@MadisonKittay) September 30, 2024
Final Boarding Call
Where I am based was on the west side of what was then Tropical Storm Helene. Several inches of rain fell; but the wind was thankfully no stronger than a breeze. I was very fortunate.
As an incentive to help the victims of Hurricane Helene and earn some miles in the process, you can earn ten American Airlines AAdvantage bonus miles for every dollar you donate to the American Red Cross with a minimum donation of $25.00 through Friday, October 18, 2024.
Photograph ©2017 by Brian Cohen.
