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Helene Recovery Resources

Updated 9/30/2024

Quick Links

Water

Pets

Wifi

Starlink

FEMA - Helene Link

Flood Insurance

Food/Mutual Aid

Carter County

Appalachian Service Project

Shelters

Mental Health

Search & Rescue

American Red Cross

TDOT

Western NC Resources

General Supplies

ETSU

Disaster Assistance

EV Charging

Water

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GENERAL

  • HOW TO ACCESS WATER FROM WATER HEATER (still needs to be boiled, may need to be filtered)

  • A message from the Town of Greeneville: NOTICE: All Town of Greeneville offices will be closed until further notice due to the water outage.

 

Police, Fire, Public Works, Building Department, and Parks & Recreation maintenance staff will work normal duty this week. This includes curbside garbage collection.

Some office employees will be working off-site with phone calls being forwarded to them.

Please call 423-639-7105 for general questions to be routed to the correct department personnel.

The City Council Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, October 1st at 4 pm will be held at the G. Thomas Love Boardroom, as usual.

If this information changes, we will update this post ASAP.

Please be patient with our working situation this week. Our employees are ready to answer your questions and complete tasks needed for our town and county's recovery.

Additional numbers:

Police 423-639-7111

Fire 423-638-4243

Public Works 423-638-6152

 

Wifi Service

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TTN Western NC: providers have enabled “disaster roaming.” Regardless of what service a person has, if they are in an area with any functional network, they will be able to make calls or send text messages. Go to settings, Then connections, under mobile network settings make sure roaming is enabled.(For iPhone users: Go to settings, Cellular, Cellular Data Options, and toggle on Data Roaming.)

 

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Starlink Stations for Public Use

 

Starlink in Black Mountain on Lower Flat C in reek Rd

Network ends in Mesh-Guest

Password: TRFlatcreek1!

 

FEMA Tennessee Tropical Storm Helene

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https://www.fema.gov/disaster/3620

EM-3620-TN​

Incident Period: Sep 26, 2024 and continuing.

Declaration Date: Sep 27, 2024

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Quick Links

â– Recovery resources: State & Local | National

â– Connect: Social Media | Mobile App & Text

â– 24/7 counseling: Disaster Distress Helpline

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Instruction on the FEMA Assistance Process

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FEMA has declared Individual Assistance (IA) for Hurricane Helene. What does this mean for you? It means that you can apply for disaster assistance from FEMA to help offset your evacuation expenses. Answering these five questions incorrectly is the greatest reason disaster survivors fail to receive the benefits they are entitled to from FEMA.

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One of the questions that FEMA will ask when you register is “Do You Have Emergency Needs”? This means during your evacuation or since the disaster at home, do you need help with Gas, Medication, Food (such as having no power and everything spoils), Shelter (paying for a place to stay with friends, family or a hotel); Clothing; or Durable Medical Equipment (oxygen, walkers, cane, glasses, etc). Say “YES” to this question. That will result in you receiving Critical Needs Assistance, which is $750 to purchase any of these items.

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You can apply online at https://www.disasterassistance.gov/ or by telephone at (800) 621-3362. Otherwise, you can download the FEMA weather app from Google PlayStore or the Apple Store and you can apply for assistance on the app and upload receipts.

Whichever method you choose, the form has a few questions that are tricky. In order to avoid delay, please follow the following tips:

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  • When asked if your home is/was accessible, answer yes if there was debris, tree branches, continued flooding, loss of power, damage or destruction that prevented you from staying there after Helene. The question means could you stay at your home or apartment and will trigger the ability for you to receive assistance to pay for hotels or provide funding to use while you stay with family or friends.

  • When asked if utilities are out, say yes, if your utilities were out for even a few days. This triggers assistance $ to stay somewhere other than your home or to buy fuel to power a generator.

  • When asked “are you willing to relocate” say yes if you cannot live in your home due to damage. This question means you are willing to stay in a hotel or apartment temporarily if needed, and triggers that funding assistance for you. It is not asking if you are willing to move away from your home permanently.

  • If you bought or buy a generator, FEMA will reimburse you up to $629, but you must submit the receipt. If you bought a chainsaw, FEMA will reimburse you up to $219. Again you need to provide the receipt. Save your receipts

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Flood Insurance

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If you have a federally-backed mortgage and live in a floodplain, you are likely required to maintain flood insurance and will probably have it, but you should verify your coverage just in case.  Flood insurance is not the same as homeowners insurance.  Find out more here https://www.floodsmart.gov/how-do-i-start-my-flood-claim

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Affected by the Storm? If your home was impacted, we’re here to help. Here are a few important steps you can take:

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Contact your homeowner's and/or flood insurance provider to report any damage and file a claim.

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Monitor www.DisasterAssistance.gov or call 800-621-FEMA (3362) for programs as they are announced in your area. There may be resources that aren’t available through your insurance.

 

Food/Mutual Aid:

 

Bring/Send to:

Bottled water

Food

Contractor size trash bags

Clothes all sizes

Blankets

First Aid supplies

Feminine hygiene

Diapers &baby clothes

Hand Sanitizer

Toilet paper

Paper towels

Bleach (bottles, spray, wipes)

Shovels

Brooms

Gloves

Coolers

Propane

Cook stoves

Flashlights

Batteries

Fans

Dehumidifiers

Generators

Volunteers

People to organize supplies and take

donations

People to deliver supplies

People with trucks to help with trash & car

 

Physical donations for East Tennessee/Elizabethton/Carter County are being accepted at:

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Elizabethton Parks & Recreation Center

300 west mill street

Elizabethton TN 37643

 

Urgently needed:

  • Drinking water

  • Liquid baby formula

  • Diapers

Needed:

  • Contractor garbage bags

  • Mops and brooms

  • Paper products, such as toilet paper, kitchen rolls

  • Cleaning rags

  • Bleach

Not accepting :

  • Clothing

East TN Appalachia Service Project:

Help with repairs and emergency services

 

Fund to help ETSU Students, Faculty and Staff in need:

In addition to the ETSU Response webpage, there is the Hurricane Helene Volunteering in East TN Area Facebook page that is sharing formal and informal information for people needing resources & support and for those wanting to provide resources & support.

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Gas (assume cash only, changing rapidly)

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EV Charging

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https://www.plugshare.com/

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Using an EV as a generator

  • If you have spare USB batteries / power banks please charge them from the car and hand them out to neighbors to charge their phones. We want to avoid people wasting gas idling an engine just to charge a phone, that's a waste of a precious resource.

  • If you have a Tesla, activate sentry mode but disable cameras, this will keep the USB and 12V ports active overnight to charge smaller batteries (with the doors locked, no HVAC used, basically just like a regular car alarm). As far as I know this is the most efficient way to transfer power from the larger traction battery to smaller ones.

  • If you have a larger 12V inverter, you can connect it to the 12V battery in the EV, same as a gas car. The EV’s traction battery should then recharge the smaller 12V battery as needed. Typically a 1500W or higher rated inverter is needed to power appliances.

TEMA

https://www.tn.gov/tema/updates/hurricane-helene.html

 

 

 

https://www.tn.gov/tema

 

Transportation (no personal vehicle)

  • NETrans

https://www.nettrans.org/ride/schedule-a-ride/

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PETS

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General Supplies

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Service

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If you are going to respond to a specific location to assist a family member, friend, or other highly individualized situation, please continue to heed travel advisories. Keep in mind that resources—like gas/diesel—are needed by emergency personnel, and be prepared for managing things—like a flat tire from road debris—without putting more strain on response systems.

If you want to deploy to a disaster response area, please go through a professional organization.

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"If you are sufficiently prepared to work under the ground-zero conditions of a disaster, then be sure to deploy under the auspices of a sponsoring organization. "Lone wolves" who self-deploy and appear unannounced at a disaster scene often do more harm than good. In one highly publicized incident, mental-health practitioners were so plentiful that they interfered with the actual rescue and recovery efforts (Gist & Devilly, 2010). Adequate training, personal readiness, and organizational sponsorship are essential if you are to make a contribution to the resilience of a community, either in this country or another, that has endured a catastrophic event." (Echterling & Milner, 2025)

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Shelters - find full county by county list here

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Mental Health 988 is the U.S. mental health line

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Search and Rescue:

 

2-1-1 AND/OR text 40403 “PERSON” (you will potentially be put on hold calling 211 and then they will tell you to text) or visit NC 211's website: https://rdcrss.org/3rqObG1.

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Missing People Support

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American Red Cross
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  • Call 800 RED CROSS or 800-733-27677

  • Select “Disaster”

  • Follow prompts for Hurricane Helen

  • Tell them your location

  • Give as much possible information

 

 

OTHER RESOURCES FOR WELLNESS CHECKS, EVACS, SUPPLIES FLOWN IN:

 

HOW TO HELP:

 

TDOT

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Traveling? KNOW BEFORE YOU GO: https://smartway.tn.gov/

 

09/29 5pm (EDT)/ 4pm (CDT) Update: 

- TDOT has inspected over 100 bridges in the last 36 hours, with hundreds more to go.

-27 sections of TDOT roadways are closed

-14 state bridges are closed, 5 are gone

-Debris clearing and removal is ongoing

 

https://x.com/MarkNagiTDOT

https://x.com/myTDOT

 

Highways (WNC)

 

  •  Road Conditions:  Call 511 or visit readync.org/stay-informed/road-conditions

  • https://www.ncdot.gov/Pages/default.aspx

  • To Charlotte: I-26 east past 40 is supposed to be clear all the way to SC. No flooding or downed lines on that road. Reports of gas available past the mountain. Gas available in Gastonia but the lines are long so driving into Charlotte would be more ideal, lots of gas there.  Other reports of no gas until Shelby.

  • FROM REDDIT:

    • We left this morning on 26 towards shelby/gastonia. We had 1/4 tank of gas and just made it to Gastonia where we were able to fill up. Most stations before then were either not open or had pretty long lines. Unsure if the situation has changed since this morning.

    • I have friends who left by that route this afternoon. They had a nearly full tank and 100 miles into SC there were still very long lines at stations that had gas. I would tell him not to try it until he can fill his tank up in Asheville. Maybe wait another day or two. Would be terrible to get stranded.

    • "If you go can make it south towards Greenville the Spinx and Murphys on 25 in Travelers Rest has gas. The Spinx has been getting steady trucks of gas throughout the day. Expect long lines. "

    • As of ~3PM you can take 40W to 74S to Franklin where there is gas available. From there cell service is consistent across the GA line near Clayton.

    • I successfully made it from Asheville to Atlanta.  Here is the route I took if anyone desperately needs to get out.  Please note that the less people driving the better emergency vehicles can get to people!  1-40 W towards exit 51, Sweeten Creek, Sweeten Creek to Hendersonville Rd, Hendersonville Rd to Airport Rd (you'll be in Arden/Fletcher, Get onto 1-26 South, I-26 to US 25, US 25 into Greenville, 185-85 South into Atlanta

  • If you can get to Greenville you are good. Anything North of Greenville is dangerous

 

  • We left this morning and took I-26 East towards Greenville then turned onto Route 76 Towards Charlotte. Be sure to check DriveNC.gov for road status.

  • 40w was open and totally clear this morning 9/29 from exit 44 (Candler) to exit 55b (Oakley)

Where to get info

  • 89.5 WETS

  • 88.1 or 107.9 blue ridge public radio: county briefings daily at 10am and 4pm

 

 

Madison County (NC):

  • ROAR - 4:30pm Monday 9/30 at 1685 NC-123, #4, Marshall, NC

  • Walnut Community Center - 6pm most days at 46 School Rd, Marshall, NC

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Alerts and signups

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Updates & News

 

EMERGENCY INFORMATION

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Other

  • Jai Fai - cuts down trees but needs help: 476-422-1292

  • Ace Hardware by Hopey on Fairview Rd. They are helping one person at a time. 800 Fairview Rd, Asheville, NC 28803

  • The Buncombe County Register of Deeds has developed a web-based form to help people in locating and connecting with residents of Buncombe County. This resource allows individuals to tell the county about anyone who they believe is missing or cannot be reached. This resource is available to anyone within or outside of Buncombe County. This form is available at this link.

 

Where to Apply for Disaster Assistance

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FEMA Disaster Assistance Application deadlines says 11/27

Disaster Unemployment Assistance

 

For Food and Beverage Workers:

Southern Smoke Foundation

Asheville Food and Beverage United is working on a how-to guide to applying for disaster relief for everyone (not just our workers) - keep an eye on our instagram for updates @avlfbu

 

Relief for Asheville's RAD Artists & Employees Go Fund Me (link to apply for funds in description)

 

Crisis Clean Up

HURRICANE HELENE CLEANUP HOTLINE :

(844)965-1386 We will connect you with volunteers from local relief organizations who may be able to assist with: Muck Out, Trees, Tarp, Debris. All services are free, but service is not guaranteed due to the overwhelming need. Volunteers work free of charge and provide the tools and equipment necessary to complete the work.

 

 

Weaverville

WEAVERVILLE and surrounding areas: Mountain Mule Packer Ranch is bringing in mule strings to transport supplies tomorrow. They will be bringing supplies and also will carry supplies you’ve gathered to areas inaccessible by vehicle. Please contact 910-885-1402 to coordinate

 

Emergency Support for Artists & Arts Organizations https://artsavl.org/aid

 

Relief funds:

https://easttennesseefoundation.org/

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Episcopal Relief Fund in Western NC:

https://support.episcopalrelief.org/hurricane-relief

 

Erwin, TN Recovery Fund:

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GoFundMe

GoFundME

Operation Airdrop Hurricane Helene Relief

North Carolina Community Foundation

The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina

Samaritan's Purse

Homeword Bound Homelessness Relief Buncombe County

MANNA Food Bank Asheville donation page

Hearts with Hands disaster relief

Baptists on Mission donation page

United Way North Carolina Helene Recovery fundraiser

Salvation Army Hurricane Helene Relief donation page

Mutual Aid Disaster Relief

9/30 Presbyterian Disaster Response is deploying National Response Team members to Tampa Bay Presbytery, the Presbytery of Western North Carolina, and Northeast Georgia Presbytery this week. We have approved several initial assistance grant requests and are anticipating additional requests from affected presbyteries to help respond to needs in their communities. Please continue praying for everyone affected and everyone responding. Gifts to support this response can be made online at: https://pma.pcusa.org/donate/make-a-gift/gift-info/DR000169/?fbclid=IwY2xjawFnphBleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHRpOudP0F5LW33_caj62k_TVGvCSKUv_SJsyhs9aL_uNb11ZxQJMIKTV7g_aem_0fS-aaFaWJKNGrZlyzKgVQ

Wifi

Relief Funds

Water
Starlink
FEMA - Helene Link
Flood Insurance
Food/Mutual Aid
Carter County
ASP
ETSU
EV Charging
Pets
General Supplies
Shelters
Mental Health
Search & Rescue
American Red Cross
TDOT
Western NC
Disaster Assistance
Relief Funds
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