Helene

Weather

FEMA extends application for assistance deadline in North Carolina

3:15pm November 11, 2024

The original deadline for FEMA assistance was extended from November 27, 2024, to January 7, 2025. As of November 11, FEMA had approved more than $227 million for North Carolina survivors of Helene.

Politics & Government

Shifted precincts and pop-up tents part of Election Day in Helene's wake

2:52pm November 06, 2024

by Paul Garber

In Yancey County, downed trees in the mountain forests and washed-out creeks and riverbeds remain over a month after the storm. Many voters saw their brick-and-mortar locations replaced by temporary white tents powered by generators.

Image shows destruction from Helene in Lansing, NC

Politics & Government

Some voting places in the High Country have changed due to Helene

4:15pm November 01, 2024

by Paul Garber

Friday’s figures from early voting in Helene’s disaster counties show higher turnout compared to the rest of the state.

Workers clear debris from the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Transportation

Two more sections of the Blue Ridge Parkway reopen

10:18am November 01, 2024

by Neal Charnoff

The National Park Service has announced that several more sections of the Blue Ridge Parkway have reopened after sustaining damage from Helene.

A hillside road collapsed into a 15-foot-deep ravine formed below it caused by Hurricane Helene in Boone, N.C., on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. SANTIAGO OCHOA/WFDD

Politics & Government

$200 million in FEMA grants approved in North Carolina a month after Helene

4:48pm October 31, 2024

by Santiago Ochoa

In Western North Carolina, FEMA continues the process of connecting residents affected by Helene with federal disaster grants.

A photo of a man with mules riding through a damaged area in North Carolina

Environment

Carolina Curious: How did mule teams provide relief to flood victims in the aftermath of Helene?

3:11pm October 30, 2024

by DJ Simmons

A WFDD listener was curious about how mules were able to help deliver aid to victims following Helene. In the latest installment of Carolina Curious, WFDD's DJ Simmons spoke with the owner of a ranch whose organization provided relief in the weeks following the storm.

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A crew of Boone-based volunteers help a homeowner get a felled branch off his roof in Boone, N.C., on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. SANTIAGO OCHOA/WFDD

Health & Safety

North Carolina expands post-Helene crisis counseling with federal funds

1:28pm October 29, 2024

by Santiago Ochoa

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services announced last week that $2.9 million worth of federal funding would be put toward increasing crisis counseling services for North Carolinians impacted by Hurricane Helene.

Politics & Government

Freedom Caucus chair says he was taken out of context on legislature deciding presidential electors

10:33am October 26, 2024

by Associated Press

The chairman of the House Freedom Caucus says news reports that quoted him saying the North Carolina Legislature should consider allocating the state's presidential electors to Donald Trump before the votes are counted were taken out of context.

FEMA expands support services in North Carolina

4:15pm October 24, 2024

by David Ford

Home owners and renters in an additional 12 North Carolina counties are now eligible for monetary assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

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Environment

Grandfather Mountain nature park reopens

1:00pm October 24, 2024

by Paul Garber

The nature park is next to but separate from Grandfather Mountain State Park. That site, like all state parks west of Interstate 77, remains closed.