Note from the Editor: Ryley Ober, a reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, kayaked approximately 20 miles along the Swannanoa River from Black Mountain to the French Broad River in early November to cover the impact of Helene.

SWANNANOA RIVER, N.C. – On the morning following Tropical Storm Helene, when the dangerous floodwaters had mostly receded in the Swannanoa Valley, Kristen Hicks found herself walking through what she referred to as “the remainder.”

In a mobile home park in Swannanoa, where 12 homes once stood, only one-and-a-half remained. Debris littered Beacon Village, a nearby community east of Asheville, where many homes were lost. Just a small number of the town’s 77 bungalows survived the storm.

“There are toys scattered everywhere; you see items that clearly don’t belong there. It’s heartbreaking,” Hicks, 38, shared with the Citizen Times, as she recalled her observations on September 28, after the storm.

A month later, surrounded by stunning fall colors on the Swannanoa Mountains, the now-shallow river still shows signs of the historical weather event that claimed 103 lives in western North Carolina and at least 231 across the southeastern U.S.

Trees have been uprooted, cars are crushed, homes are destroyed, and debris is scattered about, as some residents describe the destruction as a “tidal wave.” Torn pieces of plastic and tarps hang eerily from the trees.

As night fell over the valley in early November, Hicks noticed two new arrivals setting up camp along the banks of the Swannanoa, with tents and donated RVs now serving as temporary homes for her displaced neighbors.

One of the newcomers was a reporter from the Citizen Times, equipped with a press pass and a kayak, capturing the experiences of individuals from one of the regions hardest hit by the storm.

Hicks approached them with a blanket in hand, asking, “Would you like some food? Can I offer you a blanket?”

This unwavering kindness was evident over the following two days, highlighted by numerous volunteers, contrasting starkly with the remnants of the once-thriving riverside community.

Two days after meeting Hicks, the reporter found herself in an orange kayak stuck on what used to be a tree, now a waterlogged log. She was encircled by the broken elements of the community: shattered wood, crushed pipes, two rusty dumpsters, and a white van resting upside down against the roots of a fallen tree. Piles of wreckage were scattered all around.

Nearby, a bright red ornament floated gently in the eddy where debris gathered.

This ornament, drifting as effortlessly as many items had earlier queued up the river, reminded everyone that the “remainder” consists of more than mere wreckage. It’s not just fragments of plastic and debris.

It’s countless doors to homes, a dust-covered china plate resting on the riverbank, slides meant for children’s play in a pool of water, baseball cards lost over a quarter-mile stretch of river, along with books and artworks — a collection of memories and shared grief resonating long after one fateful day in September.

Track the reporter’s journey down the Swannanoa River

Swannanoa neighbors support one another amid disaster

Tucked between the Craggy and Black Mountain ranges to the north and the Swannanoa Mountains to the south, the valley was particularly vulnerable when Helene approached from the south, extracting excess rainfall from a wet weather system, according to Philip Prince, an adjunct geology professor at Virginia Tech.

Mount Mitchell, the tallest peak in the eastern United States, recorded 16.7 inches of rain over just two days, according to the National Weather Service. With the ground already soaked from a rain event a few days earlier on September 25, the rain from Helene flowed off the mountains directly into the streams, which subsequently fed into the Swannanoa River, as explained by Prince.

On the early morning of September 27, Hicks and her family ventured from their home in the Grovemont neighborhood of Swannanoa toward areas where floodwaters were beginning to engulf part of U.S. Route 70. What she witnessed next, she could only refer to as a “catastrophe.”

“Initially, it was just completely filled with water, and then it began to roll,” Hicks recounted.

From a hilltop, Hicks witnessed neighbors trapped on the upper floors of their homes. Others were seen clinging to trees as their cries for help echoed in his ears.

By 8 a.m., the Swannanoa River had flooded dramatically, reaching 16.7 feet, as reported by the U.S. Geological Service.

With the surrounding area cut off, volunteer firefighters and local residents, still on dry land, tirelessly worked from morning until night to rescue those stranded in Helene’s rising waters, according to Hicks.

“We used ropes to try to reach them, and some of them were saved. Sadly, we still lost many,” Hicks recounted, noting that they managed to save five individuals from the flood.

Across the river, 48-year-old John Arndt spent six hours kayaking with another resident in Beacon Village, rescuing around 17 people from their rooftops amid the blaring alarms. As the water rose to the gutters, one kayaker had to break holes in roofs to free families trapped above. Arndt carefully navigated to others clinging to gutters, helping them reach safety.

“Many people sought refuge in their attics, and you could hear their screams; their fingers were visible through the vents,” Arndt described.

Hicks believed it was around 8 or 9 p.m. when rescue boats finally arrived, allowing crews to help neighbors who were previously unreachable. Arndt recalled seeing rescue teams in Beacon Village starting around 6:30 p.m.

Some rescue efforts were temporarily redirected from areas labeled “too dangerous” in Swannanoa Valley, as noted by Lillian Govus, a spokesperson for Buncombe County.

Campers mourn and cherish keepsakes after Helene

At a Shell gas station in Swannanoa, 77-year-old Richard Neeb was cleaning mud off his girlfriend’s guitar, which he had salvaged from the Asheville East KOA campground on November 1. Nearby, a sleeping pad and pillow rested in a van, where Neeb has lived since Helene hit, bringing breakfast to the gas station workers each morning. The van’s back door has been converted into a makeshift bathroom, stocked with a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a water supply.

While Hicks and her neighbors were working to rescue flood victims on September 27, Neeb found himself stranded on top of a bathhouse at the KOA campground, enduring nearly 12 hours at the water’s edge.

Before the river peaked, it had already risen to about 14 feet when Neeb and his girlfriend, Lisa Plemmons, attempted to escape their campsite at 6 a.m. While they were leaving in a convoy, a surge of water overwhelmed Plemmons’ car, sweeping her away with the current, Neeb recounted.

Clinging to his van, Neeb managed to swim and wade to the top of the KOA bathhouse. He dialed 911 and called his daughter, but soon lost cell service. He witnessed trees, vehicles, and even people being swept down the river.

“I watched in disbelief as shower doors, lavatory sinks, and countertops were carried downstream,” Neeb, who identifies as a professional handyman, shared.

“Throughout it all, my thoughts were only of her.”

By 9:30 a.m., the Swannanoa River had risen to 20.12 feet, which is nearly 4 feet above the level that indicates major flooding, according to USGS.

On the KOA’s property across the river, Jody Henderson, a 63-year-old U.S. Air Force veteran, stood on the porch of Chelsea Hrenko’s cabin, where he took shelter with his dog, Bullet, in knee-deep water. He pointed out, “that’s my cabin,” as it was carried away by the strong current, Hrenko recalled.

“I looked at Jody and said, ‘we need to get  out of here,’” Hrenko shared.

Hrenko, 28, a massage therapist originally from Maryland, secured nylon straps around both her and Henderson’s waists, connecting them to their dogs. With her dog, Myla, safely in her backpack, they made their way to two fallen trees that provided some shelter from the fierce water flow.

At the same time, six campers and KOA staff located on higher ground were attempting to throw a rope to Hrenko and Henderson. However, they were just out of reach, and the swift water made it challenging, Hrenko later explained. A large piece of driftwood came loose from behind her cabin, dislodging them from their precarious position.

Hrenko was “incredibly lucky” to grab hold of a tree after floating about 10 feet downriver.

“I watched Jody and Bullet get swept away. I just remember being in the tree, crying out for Jody. Then eventually, I lost sight of him,” Hrenko recounted through tears.

Clinging between two tree trunks for about four hours, Hrenko felt her legs cramping and going numb from the icy waters while her neighbors attempted to rescue her. They called 911 using a satellite phone and were told several times that they were “on the list.” They even reached out to her mother to say a final goodbye.

Luckily, as the water levels began to drop later that afternoon, the KOA staff managed to throw Hrenko a rope. She used it to escape the river. Neeb, another camper, was rescued around 6 p.m. by a search and rescue team, he shared.

Somehow, Bullet managed to swim to safety and was later located. In Maryland, Hrenko honored Henderson’s memory by celebrating his birthday on Veterans Day, after he was found over a week following the storm, according to his death certificate.

Aftermath of the Swannanoa’s Devastation

As of 3:45 p.m., the Swannanoa River reached its highest point at 27.33 feet, almost three stories tall.

Constrained by the elevation around it, the river’s powerful flow destroyed homes, led to numerous fatalities in Swannanoa, and overturned large semi-trucks weighing 1,000 pounds. At Owen D. Wilson Park, the water forcefully breached the dams of two ponds and altered the river’s original path, according to riverkeeper Hartwell Carson. Part of the bridge leading to Asheville Recreation Park and WNC Nature Center was completely swept off its foundations and dragged 100 yards downstream.

As of November 21, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services confirmed a total of 103 deaths related to Tropical Storm Helene in the state.

“Given the size of the valley, the enormity of the area, and the sheer volume of water that surged in, it’s no surprise that the water was moving at such a rapid pace,” stated Prince, a geologist, in an interview with the Citizen Times.

“This is why buildings positioned on the flatter ground above the river were literally swept away by the tremendous force of the water.”

Further along from the town of Swannanoa, where the water had room to spread across flat farmland near Warren Wilson College, the river in early November looked calm, typical of its nature, aside from scattered fallen trees and an occasional laundry basket lodged 12 feet high in a tree.

However, as the river begins to narrow through neighborhoods in East Asheville, a wide area of 40-foot trees lies flattened at a bend close to Old Farm School Road. The river, constrained by higher land, unleashed a “focused fury” through the East Asheville areas, spilling yards past its banks on September 27, according to Prince.

Shattered Glass and Loss: Botany Woods Neighborhood Devastated

Dede Wilbanks used to feel comforted by the glow of her neighbors’ lights at night in Botany Woods. Now, as darkness envelops the muddy, debris-strewn lots, an overwhelming sense of weariness descends upon her at nightfall.

In this Oteen community located in East Asheville, 21 houses on Driftwood Court and Riverbend Drive were lost to the flooding brought on by Helene. For many residents in this predominantly retirement-age area overshadowed by the Blue Ridge Parkway, the river was a source of peace and joy. Before Helene hit, there were 18 homes right by the river where residents could enjoy views from their back porches and hear cows mooing from a nearby farm.

Standing at the foot of her driveway alongside neighbors who had evacuated their homes near the river, Wilbanks, 71, observed the waters wash away parts of the neighborhood that she has called home for 25 years.

“First, you’d hear a creak, and then suddenly, there it was, a house rushing by,” Wilbanks recounted. “It wasn’t just drifting; the entire house was moving rapidly along.”

On September 27, nurse Jennifer Webber, 67, was packing her car to evacuate her home on Riverbend Drive around 8:30 a.m. Water from the Swannanoa River was already cascading over her deck.

Just under two hours earlier, Buncombe County had issued a mandatory evacuation notice via emergency alerts on social media and press releases for all residents near the river, according to Govus on November 8. The county also distributed the order through the Integrated Public Alert & Warning System (IPAWS), which triggered alerts on phones at 6:15 a.m., as previously reported by YSL News.

However, Webber’s phone did not receive any notifications, she told the Citizen Times.

The next 30 minutes of her life unfolded in a “flash,” she expressed.

Webber rushed back into her two-story, stilted home to retrieve her purse and computer. Suddenly, a tree fell on the house, shifting it off its foundation. She quickly headed to her second-floor bedroom as water began flooding the building.

“I glanced at my cathedral ceilings and saw my couch and refrigerator lodged in the ceiling. It was the strangest thing I’ve ever witnessed, almost surreal,” Webber remembered.

She heard another tree fall outside her home. Water surged into her bedroom, trapping her underwater.

By 9:15 a.m., the Swannanoa River rose to 19.47 feet above its normal level, according to USGS measurements.

Webber is uncertain about what happened next but believes something might have triggered a window to open and released some of the water—creating just enough space for her to gasp for air while her furniture pinned her against a wall. Meanwhile, her house began to be swept down the street.

Webber floated down the river for nearly two miles, clinging to debris as she fought to stay above the water. The rushing current was so powerful that it shredded her shirt and tore off her shoes and pants.

At around 10 a.m., someone shouted for help from Janel Freeman’s backyard in Riverbend Forest. Going to investigate, Freeman spotted a person with white hair struggling up the steep incline from the Swannanoa River.

Janel and her husband, Bob Freeman, rushed down and found a hurt and bloodied Webber attempting to walk. They took her in, treated her wounds, and provided her with clothes and blankets. Webber ended up staying with them for the next 11 days. While assisting her with an insurance claim, Janel discovered it was Webber’s birthday and decided to surprise her with a party on October 7.

On September 27, in Botany Woods, Tony Delaurentis, 62, watched as nine homes “just crumbled” in a few hours.

“At first, I was confused by a strange cracking and breaking sound, and then I realized it was pieces of houses,” recounted Delaurentis, who is involved in campus operations at the University of North Carolina Asheville.

With a group of neighbors, Delaurentis frantically searched for his friend and neighbor, Lyn McFarland. They briefly regained cell service long enough to report him missing. Delaurentis kept trying to text McFarland with no success.

“The messages went through, but he never replied,” Delaurentis shared.

The night prior to the storm, he had dinner with McFarland at his riverside home on Driftwood Court. Delaurentis had invited McFarland to stay with him on the hill, but after noticing the water level receding, McFarland opted to remain in his home.

“Then, when the water reached the top of the house, what can you do? How do you even process that?”

Sadly, McFarland, who was 68 and worked as a real estate agent, was discovered two days later, as stated in his death certificate. A passionate collector of art, McFarland cherished music, wood sculptures, and stained glass—his home contained over 20 glass pieces. After the storm, Delaurentis found “small fragments of one” amidst the sand where McFarland’s house once stood.

Storm-hit communities support the newly displaced

One month post-Helene, the 22-mile-long Swannanoa River runs past numerous volunteers diligently clearing mud from homes and businesses, kitchens preparing thousands of warm meals, and temporary communities housing displaced neighbors in donated RVs.

Approximately 20 of these trailers are located at Pine View Buildings in Swannanoa. There, Hicks spoke to the Citizen Times while arranging clothes in a blue shed she calls “The Blessing Barn.” Hicks, a mom of four who typically serves as Pine View’s social media manager, is leading a grassroots non-profit to gather clothes, food, and toys, creating a free shopping space for residents of Swannanoa.

Her mission is to ensure that the children of Swannanoa have a joyful Christmas.

“It’s rewarding to bring some normalcy and dignity to those affected: allowing them to shop, and escape the chaos outside with all its debris and weather challenges,” Hicks expressed.

Nearby, Valerie White, 34, frequently prepares dinners for many neighbors in Swannanoa who lost their homes. As she put out her cigarette, White remarked on how grateful she is for the community’s support, yet she worries about the lasting effects of Helene on her young son.

“He’s gained so many new grandmas and uncles, but seeing the destruction every day on the way to school is traumatic because this is our home,” White said.

On Thanksgiving Day, members of this devastated community came together at Generation Church, which served over 1,500 meals to local residents.

In the Swannanoa River by Moffit Road, two 40-foot trees lay intertwined at their roots, half submerged in water, resembling two hands locked together—a poignant reminder of the strength of the Swannanoa community in the aftermath of Helene.

Ways to assist:

• Find a list of Swannanoa donation sites and their needs: https://www.swannanoagrassrootsalliance.org/donate
• Discover volunteer opportunities: https://www.swannanoagrassrootsalliance.org/volunteer
• Support Swannanoa Valley nonprofits with monetary donations: https://www.swannanoagrassrootsalliance.org/contribute
• More info about the Blessing Barn, including donation options: https://theblessingproject.org/