We survived Helene. And we got lucky … really, really lucky. Asheville and the areas east and north of there got the worst of it. If the storm had shifted further west, it might have been a different story.
A weather system had stalled over us that Wednesday and dumped rain on us for 24 hours. And then the remnants of Helene arrived the next evening bringing even more rain and high winds. We left the house on Thursday night and stayed elsewhere in case any flooding happened. It was nerve-wracking not knowing what was going to happen. The emergency alerts started at 3 AM and didn’t stop until the rain ended.
It turns out that the creek across the road stayed in its banks the whole time (from what I can tell) thanks to the town reservoir and a big dam about a mile up the road. The worst that happened here was a culvert stopped up and sent water through the lower part of the yard/driveway plus a bunch of limbs fell out of the trees around the house. The power and water stayed on but cell and internet service were nonexistent for five days. We didn’t have any idea about the amount of devastation until we were able to get back online and see the photos and videos coming from Asheville and beyond. All things considered, we made out okay, and I am super grateful for that. Our minor inconveniences are nothing compared to what communities around us are dealing with.
This is the only photo I have taken of any of the damage around the my county. The bridge on Coleman Mountain Road that crosses Jonathan Creek failed … which probably saved some friends or ours from being killed. They live in an RV on the creek just up from here and stayed even when the water was coming up under the RV. They think if the bridge hadn’t failed, they would have been washed away.
We, as far as I know, don’t know anyone personally who is missing or was killed. The county’s death toll is five. There are a lot of missing people in the communities east/north of us. Some of them will probably never be found and that’s a sobering thought. The death toll in Buncombe County is well over 100 right now.
It’s been a bit weird. Life here has pretty much returned to normal, while very close by we have friends that still have no reliable power, phone, internet, or water. I won’t say it’s survivor’s guilt but it’s … something.