Helene Recovery & Info

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President Biden approved the mobilization of another 500 active-duty troops to North Carolina to assist in the recovery efforts after the deadly and devastating Hurricane Helene.

"With a total of 1,500 troops now supplementing a robust on-the-ground effort – including more than 6,100 National Guardsmen and more than 7,000 Federal personnel – the Biden-Harris Administration is mobilizing all relevant resources to support families as they begin their road to rebuilding," the White House said in a statement Sunday.

www.cbsnews.com

Biden sends more troops to North Carolina for continued Hurricane Helene response

Hurricane Helene caused catastrophic damage from Florida into the Appalachian mountains and killed more than 225 people across multiple states.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com
 
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Ken Thomas on Facebook

[There are no Disaster Porn pics in this post. Social media is flooded with that stuff already. I don't feel the need to add to it.]

Interesting day.
It started in a Wal-Mart parking lot near Charlotte at 7AM. I was volunteering with Operation: Airdrop, and thought I'd be sorting and packing donated goods and loading them on planes to fly into western NC.
I'd been packing boxes of bug spray for about an hour when a woman in a yellow vest approached me and said "You look like a capable man."
On one hand, that's my favorite compliment. On the other hand, they are words that will justifiably fill you with dread.

Turned out a few roads had opened up west of Waynesville, and the Operation: Airdrop folks were trying to set up a new Forward Distribution Point. Your average pickup truck will haul 3 or 4 times the weight that a small airplane will. They were putting together a convoy of 'capable' pickup truck owners, to haul a bunch of stuff up there and get the ball rolling.
I've got a pickup, a Leatherman, a chainsaw, a tow strap, a winch, and a whole bottle of Advil, which I reckon makes me about as capable as anybody, so I pulled my vehicle over by the dropoff site and next thing I know, about 200 volunteers are packing disaster relief supplies into every nook, cranny and crevice of my truck.
And off we went. 8 trucks altogether.

Long story short, we made it in, unloaded, and made it back out without an undue amount of bloodshed or drama.

One thing I've learned is that war zones, earthquake zones, tornado zones and hurricane zones all share this surreal quality - complete devastation is sitting there right next to places that look pristine and completely untouched. It can seem really random and indiscriminate. A little rise in the land or a straight stretch in the river and there's little or no damage. Slightly less elevation or a bend in the waterway and it looks like it was carpet bombed by B-52s.

But I can tell you this - shit is bad up there. What you're seeing on the news is no exaggeration. Anything within 50 yards of a river or stream is toast. In the mountains, roads, bridges and power lines are pretty much always within 50 yards of a river or stream.
Donate or help out if you can. Those folks need it, and they're going to need it for awhile.

The other thing I can tell you is that all that garbage you're seeing on social media is crap, and you need to stop sharing it. FEMA isn't detaining anyone or seizing anything. Government agencies are on the ground everywhere - cops, Search and Rescue, you name it - and I had Blackhawks buzzing over my head about every 3 minutes hauling supplies up into the High Country.
 
Was in Black Mountain yesterday helping my brother-in-law with cleaning out a culvert at his grandmother’s house. We also did a few welfare checks (everyone was ok!) and sorted supplies for a bit at a church.

To the mis-information front: there’s tons of people there now and more coming every day. There’s a certain type of civilian still showing up wanting to be a hero or get a selfie doing something cool or prove themselves or whatever. But because there are active duty troops, professional search and rescue crews, etc- they’re not needed. The low-hanging fruit has been picked in that regard and the jobs going forward will require more expertise. So the dudes coming up with 4-wheelers and chainsaws are getting asked to sort donations instead and they’re *not* happy about it.

Also, if anyone will be donating soon and has any N95s leftover from COVID, those will be appreciated. It is an emerging need but will become more important- mold is already growing inside homes.
 
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Family Assistance Center Oct. 6 - Final Summary

2,685 volunteers — managed by a team of hundreds of volunteers — through the Family Assistance Center at the Buncombe Co. Register of Deeds deployed to check and re-check 15,982 high priority households with 10,000+ care packages distributed and 🪠4,413 toilets flushed. 13,049 of our neighbors confirmed safe and sound by volunteers, and via email and text, as of Sunday, October 6, 2024.

It's been a bittersweet week since Hurricane Helene hit Western North Carolina. Homes and lives were lost. People and pets displaced. There was no water, no electricity, and no communication for hundreds of thousands of people. Despite the sudden, tragic devastation, the good people of Buncombe Co. stepped up to help one another. In just eight days, thousands of volunteers, tasked with checking on tens of thousands of our neighbors, made their way to the far reaches of the county to deliver food and water, render emergency aid, flush toilets, and relay the good news — their loved ones were safe and sound.

The Family Assistance Center will close on Sunday, October 6th. As we rebuild, our community will have many needs in the coming weeks. You can find more local volunteer opportunities at bit.ly/4eRc5kZ

Volunteers, from near and far, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Join our Facebook group: FlushingAwesome

To report a missing person, please contact the Buncombe Co. Sheriff’s Department at (828) 250-6650.

Today’s Good News

A father and daughter volunteer team found an individual in extreme distress. He was in the middle of a stroke. They immediately took him to a hospital. Just a few hours later, doctors reported, he would've died. Today he was able to visit his children who had to climb trees to avoid the flooding.

Former Asheville resident and current Pittsburgh resident, Adam Casto — employing advanced AI tools — processed 6,477 unique emails and voicemails, automatically extrapolating the data into spreadsheets.

Asheville native and Missouri resident, Emily Woodall, and the Remote Data Team of 70+ active volunteers from across the country — and Finland — processed 2,000+ emails and 730 voicemails — one by one — and called, texted, and emailed 630 grateful loved ones.

Emily writes, "The most surreal moment of this experience was Saturday, Sept. 28th as I was watching emails come into the buncombesearch gmail account. People were reporting dire situations. With everyone in Asheville and WNC literally in the dark, I realized in that moment I was the only one reading these messages, and besides sending them our form, all I could do in that moment was to bear witness to this unimaginable situation. To be able to grow our remote efforts from that very lonely experience to a team of more than 70+ volunteers, to see the deep love for WNC pour in from across the country, has been one of the best experiences of my life and probably the best thing I've ever done."
 
donbosco said:
IMG_5097.jpeg

Family Assistance Center Oct. 6 - Final Summary

2,685 volunteers — managed by a team of hundreds of volunteers — through the Family Assistance Center at the Buncombe Co. Register of Deeds deployed to check and re-check 15,982 high priority households with 10,000+ care packages distributed and 🪠4,413 toilets flushed. 13,049 of our neighbors confirmed safe and sound by volunteers, and via email and text, as of Sunday, October 6, 2024.

It's been a bittersweet week since Hurricane Helene hit Western North Carolina. Homes and lives were lost. People and pets displaced. There was no water, no electricity, and no communication for hundreds of thousands of people. Despite the sudden, tragic devastation, the good people of Buncombe Co. stepped up to help one another. In just eight days, thousands of volunteers, tasked with checking on tens of thousands of our neighbors, made their way to the far reaches of the county to deliver food and water, render emergency aid, flush toilets, and relay the good news — their loved ones were safe and sound.

The Family Assistance Center will close on Sunday, October 6th. As we rebuild, our community will have many needs in the coming weeks. You can find more local volunteer opportunities at bit.ly/4eRc5kZ

Volunteers, from near and far, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Join our Facebook group: FlushingAwesome

To report a missing person, please contact the Buncombe Co. Sheriff’s Department at (828) 250-6650.

Today’s Good News

A father and daughter volunteer team found an individual in extreme distress. He was in the middle of a stroke. They immediately took him to a hospital. Just a few hours later, doctors reported, he would've died. Today he was able to visit his children who had to climb trees to avoid the flooding.

Former Asheville resident and current Pittsburgh resident, Adam Casto — employing advanced AI tools — processed 6,477 unique emails and voicemails, automatically extrapolating the data into spreadsheets.

Asheville native and Missouri resident, Emily Woodall, and the Remote Data Team of 70+ active volunteers from across the country — and Finland — processed 2,000+ emails and 730 voicemails — one by one — and called, texted, and emailed 630 grateful loved ones.

Emily writes, "The most surreal moment of this experience was Saturday, Sept. 28th as I was watching emails come into the buncombesearch gmail account. People were reporting dire situations. With everyone in Asheville and WNC literally in the dark, I realized in that moment I was the only one reading these messages, and besides sending them our form, all I could do in that moment was to bear witness to this unimaginable situation. To be able to grow our remote efforts from that very lonely experience to a team of more than 70+ volunteers, to see the deep love for WNC pour in from across the country, has been one of the best experiences of my life and probably the best thing I've ever done."
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The Flushing Brigade is inspirational as hell!
 
Saw this on Facebook. This is probably where the stories of people saying they were stopped from helping comes from.

In addition to my last post, if you are coming to WNC to help in any way, please leave your ego and your expectations somewhere else.

If you are coming to offer help or resources, you need to stay flexible and be ready to be turned away or redirected. It is not personal, it is not conspiracy! Needs are changing day by day, hour by hour. We need you to show up ready to do whatever is needed, then and there.

If you show up with an ATV and a chainsaw but they really need someone to sort diaper sizes right then, you can help by sorting diaper sizes right then. If you want to help your childhood church in South Toe, but they tell you Marshall needs it more, get going back out 80 S.

Dragging your skills and equipment around the area until YOU find an opportunity to fit YOU is not what is most helpful at this moment. Defer to chain of command! We do not need Indiana Jones right now, we need adaptable team players.
 
mpaer said:
Really , really basic Public Health Stuff Wonderful idea-wonderful work by those folks
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The motivator here is Drew Reisinger, the Buncombe County Register of Deeds. He is an amazing asset and brilliant thinker.
 
Looks like some stretches of the Parkway could be out of service for quite some time.

 
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