Uninsured/ Underinsured Accident Injury Attorneys in Asheville, NC

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Thursday marked six months since Hurricane Helene slammed the Carolinas. The storm left so much flooding and did so much damage that parts of western North Carolina won’t ever be the same.

But across the region, residents are working hard to bounce back and local heroes are out in the community – lifting each other up.

Channel 9′s Erika Jackson spoke with volunteers at BeLoved Asheville Thursday who spent the morning packing food and supply bags for community members.

ALSO READ: Popular Morganton attraction washed out by Helene partially reopens

One of the co-founders told Channel 9 the group fed 15,000 people per day in the weeks after Helene.

Now, the group provides temporary homes for people who are still without shelter. Amy Cantrell said Asheville’s economy is still unstable, so people rely on their support.

“We’ve really been about creating innovating solutions for some of the toughest challenges of our time. We’re proud to stand here on the national stage and show what ordinary people can do in communities across the country,” Cantrell said.

The group is run by donations and volunteers.

At the Biltmore, Bill Quade told Channel 9 he’s worked tirelessly to restore the grounds after Hurricane Helene.

“Whenever I stepped outside, it just looked like pickup sticks over all of the roads, over much of the property,” said Quade, director of horticulture at the Biltmore.

Despite the work Quade and his team did to get the Biltmore back open in November, visitor numbers were down consistently. Clearly, it’s frustrating.

“Asheville is a tourist economy and the Biltmore opening was going to allow the economy and western N.C. to open back as well,” Quade said.

Helene put a pause on tourism during what’s normally the busy fall season. But businesses hope the blooming spring will also bring a resurgence of visitors.

Explore Asheville said 70 percent of hospitality-dependent businesses are back open. The group’s vice president of marketing, Dodie Stephens, told Channel 9 that’s important, since 1 out of every $5 spent in Asheville comes from tourism.

“Looking ahead towards the spring and the fact that we are moving forward with these milestones and these openings, and these big events on the calendar, we’re seeing lots of signs of hope and resilience,” Stephens said.

She added that visitors from the Charlotte area are crucial for Asheville’s recovery. “It’s extremely essential for us to be communicating and sharing with them all there is to do and all of the progress that’s been made to open its doors,” Stephens said.

And at the Biltmore, Quade said, “We want guests to come in and enjoy that springtime to see the beautiful blooms from dogwoods, red buds, cherries, you name it.”

Quade said bulbs planted at the Biltmore after Helene are starting to bloom and he hopes tourism in western N.C. does the same. “It’s that rebirth – the rebirth of not only the estate, but rebirth of the region. We’ve made it through the worst part of this and the best is yet to come.”

Channel 9 also spoke with people at Highland Brewing in Asheville Thursday, a business that has been at the forefront of the recovery process.

The owners of Highland Brewing do much more than brew beer. In the weeks after Helene, the team stored supplies for North Carolina State Highway Patrol, helped a non-profit provide clean water, and housed pet food for the Humane Society.

All of this was going on as Highland was dealing with its own operation issues.

Other businesses like Highland Brewing are working to bring visitors back. This week, Erika Jackson visited Resurrection Studios Collective in downtown Asheville.

Co-owner Heidi Adams turned her family’s former music studio into an artist workspace and gallery, so displaced artists have a place to work.

“I know the artists were really excited, and it felt really magical to bring the community back together,” Adams said.

WATCH BELOW: NC Governor signs Hurricane Helene relief bill into law

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The wildfires in Western North Carolina have crept their way to Buncombe County and AVLtoday is sharing need-to-know information during these stressful times.

A combination of factors, including dry conditions, high winds, and leftover storm debris, has increased fire risk in our region. The North Carolina Forest Service issued a statewide burn ban on Friday, March 21, in effect until further notice.

The City of Asheville issued additional local restrictions to supplement the state’s burn ban.

Effective immediately, all open burning, even within 100 feet of a dwelling is prohibited, this includes recreational fires, bonfires, fire pits, and warming fires.

Cooking fires are allowed if contained within a grill or outdoor cooking device, are attended to at all times, and accompanied by an extinguishing means.

The NCFS’s fire response website has the most up-to-date information on the location and size of active wildfires.

Here’s where things stand with active fires, evacuation orders, mitigation resources, and emergency alerts for the City of Asheville and Buncombe County.

Currently, there is one fire burning in Buncombe County — in the Dix Creek community in Leicester.

As of Thursday afternoon, the fire covers 127 acres, with 20% containment, according to NCFS’s fire tracker. There are no mandatory wildfire evacuation orders in Buncombe County at this time. There is a voluntary evacuation order for the Hayes Cove area, according to the Leicester Fire Department.

The Leicester Fire Department is on scene and sharing updates on their Facebook page.

Buncombe County Fire Marshal Kevin Tipton urged residents who live near a wood line or urban interface to take the following precautions:

The county has additional resources on how to keep your property safe throughout the wildfire season.

Sign up for emergency alerts from Buncombe County by texting BCalert to 99411 or visit alert.buncombecounty.org, fill out this form for alerts from the City of Asheville.

Six months after Hurricane Helene left widespread destruction across the Southeast, "Good Morning America" returned to one of the hardest-hit communities, Asheville, North Carolina.

Robin Roberts, Ginger Zee and Sam Champion reported live from Asheville on Thursday, focusing on how the community is rebuilding and where the greatest needs remain for additional support.

Helene made landfall in Florida's Big Bend region on Sept. 26 as a massive Category 4 hurricane. In the Asheville area, the storm caused historic flooding that devastated roads, bridges and structures.

Helene also caused extensive damage to Asheville’s water treatment infrastructure, according to the National Hurricane Center. Clean water was not restored to the city until Nov. 18, 53 days after Helene hit.

While in Asheville, "GMA" announced $3 million in donations to the community from corporate sponsors including Lowe's, Food Lion, Samsung, BetterHelp, Bojangles, Red Ventures, Armstrong Flooring, 84 Lumber, Family Dollar, Honeywell, Starbucks and Hanes.

In addition, "GMA" put a spotlight on local organizations that are stepping up to help those in need and how individual people across the country can also contribute.

For example, one featured organization, Love Asheville From Afar, is helping support local businesses by curating their online stores so people can "shop local" from afar.

How to help after Hurricane Helene

These organizations are directly serving communities in and around Asheville that were impacted by Hurricane Helene:

Below, read about each organization and find links for more information.

BeLoved Asheville is a local community-based nonprofit organization focused on "providing assistance to the underprivileged and underserved people of Asheville," according to its website. The organization provides food, housing, and medical and mental health care, as well involvement with the arts and support groups.Click here to learn more.

The River Arts District Foundation provides support for the River Arts District, an artistic hub comprising more than 250 artists and 26 buildings in Asheville. Located along the French Broad River, the area experienced historic flooding during Helene. In addition to helping the arts district rebuild, the River Arts District Foundation provides scholarship opportunities and technical assistance programs for artists.Click here to learn more.

How country singer Eric Church is helping his home state, North Carolina, after Hurricane Helene

Rebuilding Hollers is a community-based nonprofit organization "committed to restoring the homes, businesses, farms, and lives of their neighbors in Yancey and Mitchell Counties," after the devastation of Hurricane Helene, according to its website. The organization was founded by a local resident after Helene caused hundreds of landslides in the area and led to the destruction of thousands of local homes and buildings.Click here to learn more.

Local heroes, volunteers help mobilize relief efforts in communities after Hurricane Helene

Global Empowerment Mission is a nonprofit organization that has responded to over 370 disaster relief missions in 69 countries and all 50 states since its founding in 2010, according to its website. Following Hurricane Helene, GEM deployed to Asheville, where it has been providing food, water, hygiene supplies, cleaning materials, tarps, pet supplies and more. Click here to learn more.

With much of Western North Carolina under moderate drought or abnormally dry conditions, wildfires are burning in the region.

The largest fires in WNC were the Deep Woods and Black Cove fires in Polk County not far from Hendersonville, that forced evacuations in Polk and Henderson counties along with states of emergency. They were burning nearly 6,000 acres combined with 0% containment as of the evening of March 25.

There also was a 500-acre fire in Swain County that forced evacuations. And the Table Rock fire in the South Carolina Upstate has grown to almost 2,300 acres with 0% containment and threatens to jump state lines, causing Transylvania County in N.C. to declare a state of emergency.

North Carolina wildfires map

Stay up to date with the location and size of fires with our North Carolina wildfire and smoke map. The map is interactive, is updated hourly and provides detailed information on each fire.

Burn bans in Western NC

A burn ban is in place for all of North Carolina.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park also has issued a burn ban.

Todd Runkle is the Carolinas Connect editor and also a trending news editor for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [email protected].

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — A Red Flag Warning has been issued for parts of western North Carolina and Upstate South Carolina, where multiple large wildfires have burned thousands of acres.

TOUGH CONDITIONS KEEP LARGE NORTH CAROLINA WILDFIRES AT 0% CONTAINMENT MONDAY

The National Weather Service (NWS) said the warning is in effect until 9 p.m. Tuesday, March 25, for Cherokee, Rabun, Anderson, Habersham, Stephens, Franklin, Hart, Buncombe, Catawba, Transylvania, Henderson, Cleveland, Lincoln, Gaston, Oconee mountains, Pickens mountains, Greenville mountains, greater Oconee, greater Pickens, central Greenville, southern Greenville, northern Spartanburg, southern Spartanburg, greater Caldwell, Burke mountains, greater Burke, McDowell mountains, eastern McDowell, Rutherford mountains, Greater Rutherford, Polk mountains and eastern Polk counties.

A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are occurring now or will soon.

CREWS, PROPERTY OWNERS WORK TO PROTECT STRUCTURES AS POLK COUNTY WILDFIRES GROW

The NWS said very dry air will linger across the area Tuesday, while winds will increase from the west and southwest ahead of a mostly dry cold front. Sustained winds of 10 to 20 mph, with gusts of 25 to 35 mph are expected across much of the area this afternoon.

"Winds will shift to the northwest behind the front this evening, although speeds will also begin to diminish," the NWS said. "With 10-hour fuel moisture is already less than 10 across much of the area, conditions will be favorable for the rapid spread of wildfire across much of the foothills and portions of the mountains of the Carolinas and northeast Georgia."

Several large wildfires burning in North and South Carolina have scorched about 7,000 acres.

The Black Cove and Deep Woods fires in Polk County are 2,813 and 2,742 acres, respectively, as of Monday evening, with 0% containment. North Carolina Forest Service officials say steep, rugged terrain, along with dry air and wind, have made fighting these fires challenging.

In the Upstate, the Table Rock Fire has burned 1,156 acres, and the Persimmon Ridge Fire has burned 314 acres as of Monday evening.

CODE RED AIR QUALITY ALERT EXPANDED TO MORE COUNTIES AS NORTH CAROLINA WILDFIRES GROW

The North Carolina Department of Environment Quality (NCDEQ) said a Code Red Air Quality Action Day will be in effect Tuesday for Polk, Transylvania, and Henderson counties due to wildfire smoke. A Code Orange Air Quality Action Day will be in place for Rutherford County.