CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Western North Carolina communities are still reeling from the devastating conditions brought by Hurricane Helene on Friday.
Flooding in the area was worsened by substantial rain in the two days before Helene's arrival. From North Carolina's most westernmost county, Cherokee County, to as far east as Mecklenburg County, widespread flooding impacted an unprecedented number of people across the state.
Buncombe County was among the counties worst-hit by Helene. The county, which includes Asheville, received around 15 inches of rain in some parts of the county, according to the National Weather Service. Asheville itself had around 14 inches of rain during the three-day period.
Yancey County received over 30 inches in its southeastern portion. The largest town in the county is Burnsville, which received around 10 inches of rain.
Reporting stations at Spruce Pine (Mitchell County), Foscoe (Watauga County), and Hendersonville (Henderson County) all measured over 20 inches during the three-day period.
Just about every county in western North Carolina received over 10 inches of rain. The abundance of rainfall caused the Broad, Catawba, Swannanoa, and Watauga rivers to be near or above flood levels. Many of these rivers crested above their record totals, which caused widespread devastation for communities in the surrounding areas.
In the days since Helene, water has slowly receded away from the impacted areas. This has brought slight relief to western North Carolina while devastating other communities as the water moves downstream. People near Mountain Island Lake, Lake Lure, Mont Holly, and other areas near rivers were forced to evacuate their homes for flooding concerns on Saturday, a day after Helene.
As of Tuesday night, a handful of North Carolina communities remain in minor flooding conditions. The French Broad River south of Asheville is still in "near flooding" status. The Catawba River is "near flooding" near Morganton. The Mountain Island Dam is "near flooding" in Gaston County. The Yadkin River is in minor flooding status at the Scott Dam near North Wilkesboro. Conditions are near normal levels in all other areas near North Carolina rivers and dams in the western part of the state.
The death toll continues to grow from Helene and has surpassed 160 in all of the impacted states. The storm has decimated much of the western part of North Carolina.