AVL Watchdog

10/15/2024

Norton said that as of 3:45 p.m. on Monday, Duke had 8,590 outages remaining, with 5,283 in Buncombe. At 10 a.m. on Monday, the numbers stood at 9,830 customers without power, with 6,684 in Buncombe County.

Today’s batch of Helene questions and answers includes the motherlode of Duke Energy questions. Duke spokesperson Bill Norton answered these all in a flurry late last week, so I’m getting all five of them all out the door today, along with one question regarding reports of looting and another ab...

10/15/2024

Mission Health’s CarePartners Health Services is temporarily closed following the pressures Hurricane Helene put on Asheville’s health care system, disrupting rehabilitative care for more than 50 patients and forcing more than 250 employees to take temporary jobs elsewhere in the system, according to employees and internal emails obtained by Asheville Watchdog.

Mission Health’s CarePartners Health Services is temporarily closed following the pressures Hurricane Helene put on Asheville’s health care system, disrupting rehabilitative care for more than 50 patients and forcing more than 250 employees to take temporary jobs elsewhere in the system, accordi...

10/14/2024

The water is flowing again in parts of Asheville’s water system, 19 days after Tropical Storm Helene destroyed main distribution lines from the North Fork Reservoir, but it is not potable and not likely to be anytime soon.

The water is flowing again in parts of Asheville’s water system, 19 days after Tropical Storm Helene destroyed main distribution lines from the North Fork Reservoir, but it is not potable and not likely to be anytime soon. At the Monday daily briefing, Asheville Assistant City Manager Ben Woody sa...

10/14/2024

Fewer than one percent of Buncombe structures, including homes and businesses, are covered by flood insurance, according to an Asheville Watchdog analysis of data from the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and U.S. Census Bureau.

A sobering data analysis from investigative reporter Victoria I. Ifatusin.

Buncombe homeowners hit hardest by flood damage from Hurricane Helene will likely face enormous costs to rebuild with limited options to pay for it. Fewer than one percent of Buncombe structures, including homes and businesses, are covered by flood insurance, according to an Asheville Watchdog analy...

10/14/2024

I know this is ridiculous, but I feel like I somehow put a jinx on Russ Towers and his business, Second Gear, which used to reside in a pretty stout-looking former warehouse building at 99 Riverside Drive in the River Arts District.

First off today, I have to purge my guilt. I know this is ridiculous, but I feel like I somehow put a jinx on Russ Towers and his business, Second Gear, which used to reside in a pretty stout-looking former warehouse building at 99 Riverside Drive in the River Arts District. Just 10 days before […...

10/12/2024

The Watchdogs took a break from bringing you the news today to help the amazing World Central Kitchen’s relief effort at Bear’s Smokehouse Barbecue that’s providing thousands of meals daily to storm-ravaged WNC. In awe of this production and a shoutout to Dog volunteers John Boyle, Keith and Sara Campbell, Starr Sariego, Victoria Ifatusin, Andrew Jones, Michelle Feuer and Sally Kestin.

10/12/2024

Reporter John Boyle takes us deep into the city of Asheville's water restoration efforts and asks: How much longer until water flows again?

While the City of Asheville crossed a milestone this week by reconnecting a major bypass valve at North Fork Reservoir that can feed the entire system, officials cautioned that full restoration is still weeks away. Contractors continue to repair the distribution system, which includes miles of pipes...

10/11/2024

After assessing the damage at locations previously designated for early voting, the Buncombe Board of Elections announced a revised list of available sites with slightly reduced hours.

After assessing the damage at locations previously designated for early voting, the Buncombe Board of Elections announced a revised list of available sites with slightly reduced hours. Each site will be open beginning Oct. 17 and will remain open until Nov. 1.  Hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily...

10/11/2024

Following the initial health crises in the aftermath of tropical storm Helene, Buncombe County and others inundated by the storm may be facing a secondary medical surge, one driven by infections and diseases and potentially exacerbated by a lack of running water, emergency response officials warned.

After the floods come the waves. Following the initial health crises in the aftermath of tropical storm Helene, Buncombe County and others inundated by the storm may be facing a secondary medical surge, one driven by infections and diseases and potentially exacerbated by a lack of running water, eme...

10/11/2024

So yes, this watering of the golf course looked, at best, odd, and at worst, extravagant in the midst of a widespread outage. It also generated quite a bit of criticism on social media.

Question: I observed on the afternoon of Oct. 8 as I was walking my dog up Kimberly Avenue that the Grove Park Inn golf course was watering the greens. Where are they getting their water? It seems outrageous to me that they would be doing this when Asheville has no water service. Please look into [....

10/10/2024

North Carolina elected officials wasted little time this week in enacting Hurricane Helene relief legislation. Less than 24 hours after legislative leaders unveiled a $273 million package that they described as a “first step” in their response to the disaster, the bill is now law.

Republished from NC Newsline

North Carolina elected officials wasted little time this week in enacting Hurricane Helene relief legislation. Less than 24 hours after legislative leaders unveiled a $273 million package that they described as a “first step” in their response to the disaster, the bill is now law. Gov. Roy Coope...

10/10/2024

There are now 155 sites down.

For comparison, there were a total 685 cell sites down throughout the region on Sept. 29.

Thousands of western North Carolina residents have limited or no cell phone signal in the wake of Hurricane Helene. As the area deals with the aftermath, Asheville Watchdog will provide a daily status report on the cell phone service outages in Buncombe, Rutherford, Madison, Yancey, Transylvania, Mc...

10/10/2024

Sagging rooflines and toppled cinder block walls are the order of the day in the River Arts District right now, but a development team that owns 11 buildings in the district says nearly all of their buildings are salvageable.

Sagging rooflines and toppled cinder block walls are the order of the day in the River Arts District right now, but a development team that owns 11 buildings in the district says nearly all of their buildings are salvageable. Standing near what was the Marquee art space, a 50,000-square-foot cinder....

10/10/2024

Standing amid the dirt and damage of Asheville’s formerly fashionable Biltmore Village, Congressional Republicans — the Speaker of the House, Rep. Michael Johnson; Rep. Chuck Edwards; and North Carolina U.S. Sens. Ted Budd and Thom Tillis — promised support for rebuilding the region devastated by tropical storm Helene.

Standing amid the dirt and damage of Asheville’s formerly fashionable Biltmore Village, Congressional Republicans — the Speaker of the House, Rep. Michael Johnson; Rep. Chuck Edwards; and North Carolina U.S. Sens. Ted Budd and Thom Tillis — promised support for rebuilding the region devastated...

10/09/2024

“I am here to assure you that Buncombe County will vote,” said Corinne Duncan, the county’s director of elections.

Here are the most important words I can offer for anyone concerned about participating in the 2024 election: “I am here to assure you that Buncombe County will vote,” said Corinne Duncan, the county’s director of elections.   In separate briefings earlier this week, Duncan and state Board of...

10/09/2024

Republican Congressman Chuck Edwards took on members of his own party Tuesday, debunking baseless claims about the Hurricane Helene response in western North Carolina made by right-wing politicians and presidential nominee Donald Trump.

Republican Congressman Chuck Edwards took on members of his own party Tuesday, debunking baseless claims about the Hurricane Helene response in western North Carolina made by right-wing politicians and presidential nominee Donald Trump. Edwards never mentioned Trump or his Republican colleagues by n...

10/09/2024

The SBA offers low-interest loans for businesses and nonprofits of up to $2 million, which can help with property damage and business disruption, Guzman said as she stood outside the ruined 12 Bones Smokehouse restaurant in the River Arts District. The first year is interest free, she noted.

It was a tough pitch. Small Business Administration Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman came to two of the hardest hit parts of Asheville on Tuesday, touting the power and flexibility of low-interest SBA loans for hard-hit business owners. The SBA offers low-interest loans for businesses and nonpro...

10/08/2024

At Monday’s daily emergency briefing, Woody again noted that we’re still looking at weeks for water restoration, although he stressed they’re “very hopeful” they can complete restoration of the key bypass transmission line at North Fork Reservoir within “72 hours.” That bypass fix represents the quickest way to restore water overall.

While the Tropical Storm Helene questions keep coming in, I’m going to keep dedicating the Answer Man columns to them. Let’s get to today’s batch: Question: The city’s unwillingness to offer any timeline for water restoration beyond “weeks” is a cop-out and an insult to citizens. They co...

10/08/2024

“FEMA is not taking any resources away from ongoing operations here in North Carolina,” spokesman Darrell Habisch told Asheville Watchdog. “We’re providing additional available resources to Florida.”

 The hundreds of FEMA staff on the ground in western North Carolina will remain and will not be redeployed to Florida in preparation for the devastation expected there from Hurricane Milton, an agency spokesman said. “FEMA is not taking any resources away from ongoing operations here in North Car...

10/08/2024

Faced with a continuing water outage and uncertainty over when full sanitation will be restored, the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office has transferred 129 inmates to five other jails across the state and to a mental hospital, Asheville Watchdog has learned — and attorneys for many of the inmates who remain say their clients should be released from custody before hearings for humanitarian reasons.

Faced with a continuing water outage and uncertainty over when full sanitation will be restored, the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office has transferred 129 inmates to five other jails across the state and to a mental hospital, Asheville Watchdog has learned — and attorneys for many of the inmates ...

10/07/2024

No, Hurricane Helene was not somehow orchestrated by people who can control the weather, FEMA is not out of money because it diverted $1 billion to illegal immigrants, and federal assistance is not limited to $750 for each storm victim.

No, Hurricane Helene was not somehow orchestrated by people who can control the weather, FEMA is not out of money because it diverted $1 billion to illegal immigrants, and federal assistance is not limited to $750 for each storm victim. These are just a few of the numerous false rumors circulating i...

10/07/2024

Andrew R. Jones provides an update on cell phone outages in Buncombe, Rutherford, Madison, Yancey, Transylvania, McDowell, Haywood, and Henderson counties.

Thousands of western North Carolina residents have limited or no cell phone signal in the wake of Hurricane Helene. As the area deals with the aftermath, Asheville Watchdog will provide a daily status report on the cell phone service outages in Buncombe, Rutherford, Madison, Yancey, Transylvania, Mc...

10/06/2024

Asheville Watchdog's Sally Kestin takes stock of Hurricane Helene's devastation to some of the city's well-known businesses.

That dreadful sense of loss. We’ve felt it time and again the past nine days, over neighbors who lost lives and homes, over our infrastructure that lost the ability to provide for our basic needs, and over our beloved city and county, unrecognizable in many parts. But Asheville has also lost part ...

10/05/2024

John Boyle takes a look at Asheville's water restoration efforts. The North Fork Reservoir is the city's focus now, but a specific timeline for full return of water hasn't been provided.

Twice in two decades, enormous transmission lines have washed out at North Fork Reservoir after torrential, hurricane-induced rain events, leaving city residents without water for days on end. In September 2004, a historic rain event spawned by a hurricane pummeled the Black Mountain and Swannanoa a...

10/05/2024

Asheville Watchdog's Victoria A. Ifatusin gathered data on three historic floods that have hit the region. By several measures, the 2024 flood broke records.

In terms of rainfall, flooding, and, tragically, lives lost, Hurricane Helene is officially worse than the historic 1916 and 2004 floods that until last week stood as the most damaging natural disasters in recorded Buncombe County history, according to state climate data. “I just kind of assumed t...