Horizon to horizon,
Memory written on the wind
Fading away, like an hourglass, grain by grain
Swept away like voices in a hurricane
In a vapor trail
– Rush, Vapor Trails
Lyricist Neil Peart wrote those lyrics in 2001, after a long period of silence that followed the death of his wife and daughter in rapid and tragic succession. A masterful wordsmith, Peart’s lyric captures a tangible sense of loss, and for me his imagery can’t help but bring to mind the staggering loss that has taken place across the southeastern US, especially in the devastated Appalachian mountains of North Carolina.
Those memories are currently being written on small, local news sites and radio stations, as well as national and international media outlets. Many television journalists are taking great risks to reach isolated, devastated communities – cut off from all communication, electricity, food and water now for almost a week – to share their stories and reassure them that people know they are there, and that help is on the way.
Chimney Rock, NC. Photo: X
The people living in this area have experienced a catastrophe with almost no comparison. War veterans keep saying that they have never seen destruction like this. Storm chasers say the same thing. Even the Cajun Navy commander says they have never seen destruction on this scale, not even after the fires in Maui.
Crews were still trudging through knee-deep muck and debris in the wake of the deadly category 4 storm that dumped more than 40tn gallons of rain on the southern US after it crashed ashore in Florida on Thursday. The amount of rainfall is enough to fill Lake Tahoe – with its depth of 1,645ft and surface area of 191 sq miles” – The Guardian
To say that infrastructure has been destroyed is an understatement. Much of the power grid was washed away, and even more critically, water systems are in many cases destroyed.
[Asheville] City Assistant Manager Ben Woody described the impact on the water department as “catastrophic,” as there is “very limited access” to the William Debruhl Water Plant because the primary road to the plant had been washed out. Three water plants need “extensive repairs,” but there are already federal agencies on the scene “helping us make repairs,” Woody said, noting that the city of Greensboro has sent water repair crews and equipment.
The storm had washed out 24-inch and 36-inch water main lines and transmission lines at the North Fork Water Treatment Plant, Woody said. The city had installed redundancies on the site in 2004, after Hurricane Ivan flooded the area, but those were washed out too, he said. Woody noted that the repairs could “potentially take weeks” to restore. – Asheville Citizen Times
Meanwhile, there are wars and an election and so much else to get our attention. Media coverage of the disaster is already getting thinner – at least until the death toll numbers start climbing again, which they will. Individual stories are already being swept away like the victims they describe.
They deserve to be captured and shared, these voices from the hurricane – before our attention moves on.
“Cars, trucks, billboards and whole houses. That was a short list of the things that Syd Yatteau saw float by, along with her family members Erik and Lana Maystruk, as the Swannanoa River hit approximately 26 feet at Biltmore Village” – Asheville Citizen-Times, Asheville, NC
“In the town of Swannanoa is a neighborhood called Beacon Village. Built in the 1920s, the area was completely destroyed after Helene wreaked havoc on western North Carolina.
On Friday morning, water levels rose as high as the roofs of houses. Residents told WXII’s Chris Petersen that they had to be saved from those same roofs after having to climb on top to find some sort of high ground safety. – WXII News in Swannanoa, NC
“Within a matter of minutes, the water was waist-deep inside the store,” Trammel said. A tape measure used to measure water damage shows the water reached just shy of 5 feet inside the store before it receded.
Trammel said she knew it was time to leave when she was submerged in water.
“I left when the water was about to my shoulder,” she said. “There was a back door that I was able to get through all the equipment. The equipment was already starting to float.” – WRAL News in Lansing, NC
“Jessica Meidinger, Kim’s daughter, said when Rod opened the front door on Friday, he knew they were in danger.
“He went outside just to check on where the water level was at that time, and he noticed a quarter of the house had already been washed away,” Meidinger said. “As soon as he saw that he was running inside and told her to get dressed.”
Before the couple could finish getting dressed, the power of the surging Elk River ripped the house off its foundation and carried them away.
“They managed to get on a mattress and just held on,” Meidinger said. “They hit in an embankment or a turn, and the house just kind of collapsed on them. And they started, I guess they were able to grab each other and were floating. At some point, they got hit by a tree and got separated in the water.”
That was the last time Kim Ashby was seen.
Rod was found the next day, two miles away from the property; he is recovering and refuses to leave the area until Ashby is found.” – WRAL News in Elk Park, NC
“As a nearby home was being swept away, Leslie Worth, the homeowner, was trapped inside. Desperate onlookers could only watch as the house was carried downstream.
“When it was happening, I was trying to make the calculated risk of ‘how do we save her?” Eddie Hunnell said. Witnesses watched in horror while floodwaters consumed the house, panic surged for the woman still inside. “Oh my God … jump … jump!’ one witness urged Worth.
Without hesitation, Hunnell jumped into the floodwaters to rescue her.
“I grew up swimming on a swim team. I was a lifeguard, and I’m in okay shape, but I couldn’t watch her die,” Hunnell said. “I felt like I needed to do that.” With a life vest and rope in hand, Hunnell braved the strong currents of the New River.
He managed to reach Worth and bring her safely to shore. – WRAL News in Ashe County, NC
“There is a house right by where I work that is on the river side of the road. And when I was driving by today, I noticed that something looked kind of weird, and then I realized that the house was still there but it was not on its foundation. It had floated down across the property and was now just sitting on the far end. I’ve seen trees on top of cars. Power lines are down everywhere still. It’s just a lot of destruction all over the place.” – Kyle Lowder in Asheville, NC on Slate.com
“It took a helicopter to get Chimney Rock business owner Steve Gale out of Hurricane Helene’s way. When he returned on Tuesday he found how much he and his neighbors had lost.
“The storm blew the doors open,” he said. “The mud and the rain came in two directions. It blew all the merchandise out. I’m looking at where all my T-shirts were and the counters, and I don’t know where they are,” he said.
Gale’s Chimney Rock Shop, a souvenir shop, stood in downtown Chimney Rock since 1947, 77 years, run by the same family. While the building survived the rush of water, “inside is a disaster,” Gale said. – WRAL News in Chimney Rock, NC
“[Middle School principal Emily Dellinger] and teacher Carolina Turner spent an emotional few days trying to reach each family. The good news: They made contact with every child.
But each call or visit results in a tale of loss at a level no child should have to witness. Dellinger offered as an example the story of a child who saw his mother swept away in a mudslide.
She described, “He turns around, and he says, ‘I saw the tree coming, I looked over and my mom was gone.’” – WRAL News in Ashe County, NC
“We have one suitcase, really,” said North Carolina resident and Hurricane Helene survivor, Aaron Smith, told ABC News. “And so trying to figure out four people and a dog out of one suitcase, it’s the most, it’s just surreal.” – ABC News in Bat Cave, NC
I spoke to one friend, Hannah Cate, on Instagram. “When we woke up we had no idea what was out there,” she told me. “It wasn’t until we heard the screaming that we knew something was terribly wrong. Walking from her family home, she witnessed “several people begging us to save them – hanging from trees and sitting on floating pieces of debris. We were completely helpless”. – NC Native Lauren Bulla writing from London on The Independent.com
“Samira Zoobi was confirmed dead. She was 28.
Colette Zoobi said her daughter was in her apartment unit at Riverview Apartments on Rivers Edge Road near Tunnel Road and off the Swannanoa River during Helene on Sept. 27.
She said she texted with her daughter at 10:30 a.m. and the water had risen to the second level of the apartment building. She said rescuers were called and arrived around 1 p.m.
“At that point, they were trying to save all the residents, and her building was washed away,” Colette Zoobi said. “She was not able to get ahold of the ropes and was washed away.” – Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville, NC
“Among those who died were 7-year-old Micah Drye and his grandparents, Nora and Michael Drye. According to family members, the three of them were trapped on the roof of a home in Asheville, but later got swept into flood waters and drowned when the home collapsed.” – WRAL News in Asheville, NC
“I looked back and saw a 30-foot wall of earth heading for us. Then I turned and my wife was gone.” – CNN outside Asheville, NC
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