One year ago, Helene brought rainfall totals across the southern Appalachians that would only occur on average once every 1,000 years. In Asheville, the river gauge along the French Broad topped the previous record set over a century ago by more than a foot and a half.
While residents were prepared for a significant storm, few anticipated the extent of the flooding, landslides and countless fallen trees that followed. A year later, kudzu and vines now cover many of these fallen trees, but the memories of the storm linger for those who experienced it. WFDD’s David Ford spoke with one such resident, his mother, Mary Park Ford, at her home in the mountains.
Conversation Highlights
On the morning the storm hit:
"I remember that it was raining and it was windy, and as you know, I live in an area where there are trees all around, and the first one hit, and I said, 'Yes, I guess I've been expecting that might happen.' And then the next one hit, and then the third one was the big hickory that was directly behind my house. And the big tree did fall in such a way that some of the branches came all the way through the roof into the house — one in the living room, one in the kitchen, one in one of the downstairs bedrooms. So that's a little surreal to walk into a room and see the tree branches in your house and imagine that you might have been sitting there at the time."
On the neighbors' response:
"It was just phenomenal, and a lot of it was happening when I was unaware of it. Because, as you know, from my house, I cannot see the bottom of my road, and so I didn't even realize until later, how many of my neighbors were out there trying to clear the road of trees. Because, as everyone knows, I am the oldest person living up here, and if there could be an emergency, there'd be no way for emergency vehicles to be able to get up to my road unless it was cleared. So many people came to help, and I will be forever grateful for them."
On having to move out and deal with all the different parties involved to get back home:
"Emotionally, it was a really hard time, but I was very fortunate to have you and Jacqui living fairly close by, and that you offered up your Home, and an insurance company that was immediately responsive, and an insurance adjuster who has been helpful every step of the way, and the contractor that I was able to engage was available. And believe me, after this happened, I was not the only person needing immediate help, as well as long-term help. We're still finishing up. This is a year later, and we're just now finishing up. That's how long it has taken to put this house back together completely."
On the trauma of living through that storm and the aftermath:
"There are very few times when I've felt close to weeping about this. Tearing up, yes. I do that because I think about things that are missing and what happened to me. And I mainly also think about other people who are not as fortunate as I am, who have truly lost their houses, or the people who had this much damage but did not have a great insurance company or any funds set aside to be able to help out in the short term. So I don't think I've ever found a time when I was just gonna completely break down. ... It took a while to come back, and just being able to look out the window and find that most of the things that I used to look at are still there, and all will be well."