WEAVERVILLE, N.C. — After Helene isolated western North Carolina communities with landslides, flash flooding and road damage, good Samaritans have had to find creative ways to bring in much-needed supplies.
In addition to aircraft drops by military and civilian pilots, mule packers are using the animals to walk supplies into mountainous communities.
"Mules and equipment are loaded, and the first big batch of supplies has been purchased and loaded," the Mountain Mule Packer Ranch posted on Facebook Monday. "We have two fully loaded trucks and 20' stock trailers heading to WNC for assistance!"
Later Monday, the ranchers posted pictures of the animals and supply cargo to social media.
"We will be setting up a staging area and beginning to assist this afternoon," they wrote on Monday, "and will be bringing up additional loads of supplies once mules are in place!"
The Mountain Mule Packer Ranch partnered with the Cajun Navy, another group of civilian volunteers, to deliver insulin to a family on Monday, according to their Facebook posts.
The ranchers have setup their staging area in Montreat on Tuesday. They were planning to make trips into Black Mountain.
Mountain Mule Packer Ranch is based out of Mount Ulla, which is located between Lake Norman and Salisbury in North Carolina. They have been using their Facebook page to announce when they will be at the Food Lion, located at 11745 Statesville Blvd. in Cleveland, NC, to collect donations.