Above: Church member Sherrie Mayotte views damage to the kitchen at Pensacola United Methodist Church in Burnsville, N.C., after it was flooded by storm runoff following Tropical Storm Helene. The nearby Cane River overflowed its banks and drove a wall of water packed with mud, trees and parts of destroyed homes into the church fellowship hall and kitchen.
Nov. 20, 2024 | BURNSVILLE, N.C. (UM News)
Hurricane Helene, which made landfall on Sept. 26 in Florida as a Category 4 hurricane, weakened to a tropical storm over the mountains of Western North Carolina. The remnants of Helene led to three days of record rainfall that caused catastrophic flooding and spawned tornadoes in valley communities of the region. Helene killed more than 100 people across the state.
More than 18 inches of rain fell across three counties in Western North Carolina, according to the North Carolina State Climate Office.
United Methodist News is documenting the effects of climate change — such as more frequent and stronger hurricanes in the United States — through a series of dispatches from affected areas and detailing the denomination’s response.
Bishop Ken Carter, who leads the Western North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church, said it’s estimated that more than half of the 44 counties in the annual conference have been affected.
Specially trained United Methodist Early Response Teams have been working in the affected areas since Oct. 8, and more than 500 United Methodists signed up to complete the required training to serve during the stabilization phase between relief and recovery.
“The last five weeks have been a time of trial, suffering and death. And yet, we are resurrection people, people of hope. This is the good news that we preach. Now is the time to claim this good news in our own lives,” Carter said in an Oct. 31 letter to church members.
By mid-November, hotels and restaurants in the area remained under a boil water advisory, meaning that hotels that have reopened are providing bottled water to guests for drinking and brushing their teeth.
Nancy Galvan (left) and Glenn Cliborne, members of an Early Response Team from Bethlehem United Methodist Church in Moneta, Va., remove flood-damaged household items from a storage barn at Anita McKinney's home in Newland, N.C. Runoff from storms spawned by Tropical Storm Helene tore through mountain communities in Western North Carolina, causing major flooding.
Al Miller shares a laugh with Anita McKinney during a visit to her home in Newland, N.C. An Early Response Team from Bethlehem United Methodist Church in Moneta, Va., had been cleaning up flood damage at McKinney’s home after storms spawned by Tropical Storm Helene caused nearby Squirrel Creek to overflow its banks. Miller, the former director of disaster ministries for the North Carolina Conference, is leading the disaster recovery center at Spruce Pine United Methodist Church.
The bridge across the Cane River in Burnsville, N.C., that leads to Heather Carter’s home was washed away by floodwaters during Tropical Storm Helene. Volunteers working with the disaster recovery center at Spruce Pine (N.C.) United Methodist Church removed moldy ductwork in the home’s basement. State highway workers have installed a temporary bridge across the river.
Rick Morgan visits with Heather Carter outside her family home in Burnsville, N.C. Morgan was part of a volunteer team from Beulah Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh that removed moldy ductwork in the basement after it was flooded by storm runoff following Tropical Storm Helene. The team was working with the disaster recovery center at Spruce Pine United Methodist Church.
Don Keibler (left) and the Rev. Alex Ruzanik remove moldy ductwork at Heather Carter’s family home in Burnsville after the basement was flooded by storm runoff following Tropical Storm Helene. They were part of a volunteer team from Beulah Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh who were working with the disaster recovery center at Spruce Pine United Methodist Church.
Homeowner Heather Carter speaks with the Rev. Alex Ruzanik (right) about damage in her basement after it was flooded by storm runoff following Tropical Storm Helene. At left is Rich Stevens, who was part of Ruzanik’s volunteer team from Beulah Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh that was working with the disaster recovery center at Spruce Pine United Methodist Church.
Rosa Sistare helps explain preparations to winterize temporary housing in camping trailers for residents of the Grindstaff Trailer Park in Spruce Pine, N.C. Residents survived flash flooding that rolled their mobile homes onto their sides after Tropical Storm Helene caused nearby Brushy Creek to overflow its banks. Sistare serves as a volunteer interpreter for the Hispanic community, most of whom are longtime residents who have raised their children there. The disaster recovery center at Spruce Pine United Methodist Church has helped provide the camping trailers and is helping them to prepare for winter weather.
Armando Romero is among residents of the Grindstaff Trailer Park who survived flash flooding from Tropical Storm Helene.
Volunteers carry bales of hay that will be used to help insulate around camping trailers used for temporary shelter at the Grindstaff Trailer Park. From left are Kevin Cox with the United Methodist Committee on Relief and Andy McGhee and Rick Morgan from Beulah Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh who were working with the disaster recovery center at Spruce Pine United Methodist Church.
Misty Hughes points out where the railroad crossed the Nolichucky River in Poplar, N.C. The bridge was washed out by flooding caused by Tropical Storm Helene. Hughes is director of the Poplar Community Center, which provides a food pantry and social services in the small, mountain community.
Church member Mark Mayotte stands atop part of the blown-out back wall of the sanctuary at Pensacola United Methodist Church, which was heavily damaged by flooding caused by Tropical Storm Helene. He has named the temporary wall behind him the “West Virginia Wall,” in honor of the United Methodist volunteer team from there who put it up to protect the sanctuary from further damage.
Carol Valetine sweeps up dried mud and bits of insulation at Anita McKinney's home in Newland, N.C., after flood-damaged insulation and wall sheathing was removed. Runoff from storms spawned by Tropical Storm Helene tore through mountain communities in Western North Carolina, causing major flooding. Valentine is part of an Early Response Team from Bethlehem United Methodist Church in Moneta, Va.
Deb Isemann cleans mud from dishes at the home of Anita McKinney in Newland, N.C., after flooding caused by Tropical Storm Helene caused nearby Squirrel Creek to overflow its banks. At rear is Nancy Galvan. They are part of an Early Response Team from Bethlehem United Methodist Church in Moneta, Va.
Muddy dishes salvaged from Anita McKinney's flooded storage barn rest on a table in Newland, N.C. A United Methodist Early Response Team from Bethlehem United Methodist Church in Moneta, Va., is helping with cleanup and recovery there.
Frank Nelson (center) and Doug Coffey visit with Anita McKinney (center) at her home in Newland, N.C. The men are members of an Early Response Team from Bethlehem United Methodist Church in Moneta, Va., that has been cleaning up flood damage at McKinney’s home caused by Tropical Storm Helene.
The playground at Riverside Park in Spruce Pine, N.C., is covered in sand and mud after flash flooding caused by Tropical Storm Helene.
Volunteer Andy Smith removes flood-damaged building materials from the home of Barbara Douglas in Spruce Pine, N.C. He is part of a volunteer team from Floris United Methodist Church in Herndon, Va.
Al Miller surprises Barbara Douglas with a birthday greeting at her home in Spruce Pine, N.C., where United Methodist volunteers were cleaning up flood damage caused by Tropical Storm Helene. Miller, the former director of disaster ministries for the North Carolina Conference, is leading the disaster recovery center at Spruce Pine United Methodist Church.
Randy Slemons walks among dozens of trees that were toppled by winds from Tropical Storm Helene at the Garden retreat center, which he operates near Poplar, N.C. He said he and his wife used to sing a song of thanks every morning for the beautiful setting and ask one another, “Can you believe this is our home?”