SPRUCE PINE, N.C. — Over a week after Helene made landfall in the United States, the cleanup efforts continue in towns like Spruce Pine in the mountains of Mitchell County in western North Carolina.
The water is now gone, but the damage is expected to take months if not longer to recover from. The entire downtown area of Spruce Pine is still covered in mud and businesses are closed, with many homes in the area also damaged or destroyed after Helene’s flood waters.
Many people are now homeless and forced to start over. Beverly and Joel Nelson say they are some of the lucky ones. Three trees are still on top of their house. They said they had no power and no water and were trapped inside for five days, hoping and praying that somehow help would find them.
“It was like, we felt like the closest thing to dying," Beverly Nelson said. "You know, we didn't know if we get out, we didn't know what would happen. And the roads covered in trees and behind our house looked like a jungle forest. All the trees had fallen, and we just begged for help.”
Beverly Nelson said she has a graduate degree in counseling and counseled people for years, but this has felt different.
"I've been in some hard things but there's something about it and you don't know from one minute to another, those three trees could follow me and crush you to death," Beverly Nelson said.
Spruce Pine was meant to be the first overnight stop for the annual Cycle NC Mountains to Coast ride, an event that brings in cyclists from all over the world to see the beauty of North Carolina from the mountains to the coast. But after Helene's devastation, cyclists are instead starting in Lenoir and head to Statesville on Monday.
The event was supposed to take cyclists from Spruce Pine all the way to Ocean Isle Beach this year, and organizers say it's always a major tourism boost for each town on the ride. After Helene, many western North Carolina communities like Spruce Pine will be missing out on the tourist spending.
"They worked over a year to bring this event to their town, just like all the rest of our overnight towns did as well," Cycle NC ride director Chip Hofler said.
Because of this loss for Spruce Pine, Statesville is stepping up to lift up their neighbors in need. While welcoming cyclists in from Lenoir, the city of Statesville -- known as the home of the Carolina BalloonFest -- will be giving tethered hot air balloon rides to raise money for Spruce Pine.
"This was an effort to do what we do every day, we're a ballooning community, to take that and specifically lift up Spruce Pine because they are missing out on this economic impact, and do it in partnership with Cycle NC," Cindy Sutton, executive director of the Statesville Convention & Visitors Bureau, said.
For those in the community wanting to participate, local balloon pilots donated six hot air balloons to offer rides between 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. All it costs is a minimum $10 donation toward Spruce Pine's recovery.
"We thought why not invite the whole community out, let them get to meet some of these cyclists and then lift them up too, because there's nothing that makes you feel happier than seeing a hot air balloon," Sutton said.
Donations for Spruce Pine's recovery efforts can also be made online.