This weekend marks one year since Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina. The wind, mudslides and massive flooding caused billions of dollars in damage, and Helene is blamed for 108 deaths in the state.
The mountains still have a long road of recovery ahead. To see how one part of the region is faring a year on, WFAE’s Marshall Terry reached out to Zeb Smathers. He is mayor of the town of Canton, about 20 miles west of Asheville along I-40.
Marshall Terry: Mayor, take us back to a year ago today as the storm first hit. What were you feeling and what did you see?
Zeb Smathers: Our story is a little different than many of our other mountain communities. Because of the hurricane we experienced in 2021, which devastated Canton and we lost six lives then, we saw this storm coming. So we started preparing on the Sunday before. I'm very proud of what we did then. I think we saved lives and saved property, but you can only do so much when there's 26 feet of water in your downtown.
And my fear going into this week last year was this time it wasn't just going to be Canton. It was going to be Cantons across the mountains. That's exactly what happened. So we now share our story with so many other towns.
I just look back to how quickly the rain came. We knew immediately this was going to be apocalyptic, and then the cell phones went out. That is something, really, to be honest, I keep coming back to.
It really is one of the unanswered questions I have is what happened to our cell phones? because we had to face down a 21st-century storm, one of the worst in American history and the worst in North Carolina history, with 20th-century technology.
The inability to communicate, that absolute breakdown of communication infrastructure, not just for Haywood County but the entire region, is one of those issues that still haunt me today.
Terry: What stories stand out for you? Who do you remember from those early days in terms of people coming to help or just other stories that stick out?
Smathers: I always try to take a moment like this to say thank you, because something that I think about, there's someone listening right now that did something to help. It might have been sending food or money or help rebuilding a home. And I saw that immediately, not just our first responders, our town crews, our law enforcement responding, as they always do.
But immediately, the outpouring of support from nonprofits, from churches, to the Amish, hands and hearts — the devastation in western North Carolina, you had to see it to believe it. And it was truly apocalyptic.
It didn't matter who you are, who you were voting for in the upcoming election last November. We saw the absolute best of North Carolina. We saw absolutely the best of the United States immediately in the minutes following when that hurricane hit until now.
And so again, I'm never going to be able to say thank you, but I'm certainly going to try.
Terry: How is Canton doing today? What’s the biggest challenge your town is still facing?
Smathers: Anyone who knows Canton’s story knows this is just the next chapter. From Fred, which devastated us, to the mill closure, now to Helene.
Terry: I just want to point out that's the big paper mill, Pactiv Evergreen. That was a big employer in town that just closed.
Smathers: Yes, in ‘23, out of nowhere, it was announced that this paper mill that had been with us for 115 years, one of the largest economic drivers, was closing. So we have taken our hits in the town of Canton. Not just us, but the entire region.
To be around these people, still finding ways to believe better days are ahead, when you have that type of people in your community, that grit, that grace, that toughness, it inspires me even on my most challenging days. But we're making it. We are rebuilding our economy. We are rebuilding our infrastructure.
Again, there are businesses that are open because we saw this storm coming. I think that is one of those low-level mitigation strategies that if you know there is a storm on the way and you're near water, you need to be able to get your inventory out, your memories out of your homes. And so we did that. So a lot of businesses were able to get back open.
Again, I've said it before, and this is one of the challenges: if you give the people of western North Carolina the resources and therefore the respect they deserve, they will rebuild their homes, their businesses, and their hearts.
But again, what we're seeing, especially out of Washington, is such a delay, such bureaucracy, that is truly choking out the speed with which we can recover.
Terry: Elsewhere in the mountains, there's still a lot of recovery going on. What's your sense of how the region's economy is doing overall, especially at the start now of leaf season and the first real, full tourist season since all of this?
Smathers: If you're listening, please find time to come see us in western North Carolina. It doesn't matter where you go, just come see us. And when you're here, go to a business, especially a small business, and say thank you for having their doors open.
We still have a long way to go. I think it's very characteristic of western North Carolina that we put on a brave face. Our economy still is on razor's edge. We've had a lot of places open. There's still a lot of places not come back.
We will get there, and we'll get there with people supporting us, tourism, and small businesses. We want people to come see us. You're going to find a lot of appreciative people when you come see us in the mountains of western North Carolina.
