By: Dalton Feldman
Hurricane Helene was a devastating hurricane that affected Western North Carolina. The small mountain towns on NC infrastructures were not prepared for a hurricane of this magnitude. Many organizations are devoted to restoring western NC. From the North Carolina Medical Society website, they include these origination’s that are still actively fighting to restore western NC. By clicking on any of these links you can donate to these organizations.
- North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund – This is the homepage for a state fund that is managed by the United Way of North Carolina.
- Local and regional nonprofits and support agencies – This list comes from Blue Ridge Public Radio.
- NCMS Medical Practice Disaster Relief Fund – The North Carolina Medical Society has a disaster relief fund that provides grants to rebuild or repair practices.
Some of my best friends are students at Appalachian State. Because of the hurricane they were out of class for nearly a month and many buildings were flooded and damaged. Based off information from WUNC, the damages to Apps campus is estimated to be about 33 million dollars. This is very devastating because the majority of people living in Boone are students. Without the University running the small town economy will not recover. App State has recovered well but they are still not running to their full strength.
Even though Hurricane Helene struck Western North Carolina in late September, many residents are still struggling with the aftermath. Local businesses are struggling to recover, major infrastructure such as roads, power lines, and water systems continues to be in urgent need of repair. Community efforts and outside assistance are making a difference, but the road to full recovery will take time, resources, and continued support. With your help we can not only rebuild Western North Carolina but we can make it stronger than it was so something this catastrophic doesn’t happen again.
https://www2.ncmedsoc.org/pages/disaster-relief
https://www.britannica.com/event/Hurricane-Helene
https://www.wunc.org/education/2024-10-18/unc-system-damages-helene-western-nc-colleges