Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Following the devastation Hurricane Helene left behind in western North Carolina, the state’s Emergency Management Services reached out to county governments requesting EMS officials, law enforcement, emergency managers, and government administrators. Those counties, in turn, sent their manpower to the mountains to provide help where needed. 

From Beaufort County, two paramedics, a fire marshal, an emergency manager and Beaufort County Government’s Public Information Officer, Brandon Tester traveled to various locations in the mountains. They didn’t go all at the same time, but signed up for week-long assignments when they were able. In addition, Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office and multiple volunteer fire departments in the county have held supply drives and have delivered those supplies in several locations in western NC. 

Tester was assigned to help Buncombe County Government’s Communication Team disseminate accurate information on storm recovery efforts, and where hurricane victims could access basic necessities, as well as internal and external communication. His assignment was seven days long from Oct. 26 to Nov. 2. 

This meant working alongside agencies in western NC, municipalities, FEMA, area nonprofits and stakeholders to make sure correct and timely information reaches an entire population. 

“We’re meeting people where they are,” Tester said. “This storm displaced a lot of people. A lot of people are in shelters or in similar situations. A lot of people’s lives have been turned totally upside down. So, you’ve got to find ways to reach them and effectively communicate with that region.” 

Misinformation was a continuous challenge the Communications Team and volunteers had to, and still have to, overcome. 

“In a situation like that where you’ve had so many communities and people who are understandably frustrated because their lives have been so drastically altered, there’s a lot of information flying around by either word of mouth or otherwise,” Tester said. “When we were over there, the priority was really to bring all of our local stakeholders to the table and craft joint messages so we’re all sharing a united message. We’re all sharing the same information about resources that are available and how we can point people in the right direction.” 

Getting accurate information out to people in the region looked like updating websites and social media, but for people who did not have internet access, it looked like word-of-mouth from volunteers. 

One task Tester was given was flying a drone over land and towns impacted by the storm. He said the scenes that returned on the drone footage were “startling.”

“The damage out there is startling to say the least. Particularly, those lowlying areas got hit very hard. You’re not just talking about a few homes getting hit hard. You’re talking about entire communities that were just wiped off the map,” Tester said. “Being able to see that image, you really get to see the severity of it from overhead. It’s almost as if certain geographic features have been permanently changed because of the severity of the damage.”  

Tester went to Charles D. Owen Park in Swannanoa to take drone footage of storm damage. Pictures of the park, pre-Helene, show an expansive park with a small lake, baseball fields, basketball courts and a playground. While there, he kept checking a map to make sure he was in the right place, because he couldn’t recognize the park. “That lake is completely gone, because there’s no water left. It was washed out.” 

This is why Tester and Beaufort County’s Emergency Management Service stress the importance of water safety during hurricane season in eastern NC. “When you see a storm in the forecast or a hurricane, we tend to pay attention to that category, whether it’s Cat 3 or Cat 4, and that’s all very important because that tells you specifically the wind mostly and that creates hazards on its own. Another big thing we need people to pay attention to is water, because water can kill people and destroy things very quickly as we’ve seen in the western part of the state.” 

“We always have to be observant about what the water’s doing and what it’s expected to do and be aware of what’s around you,” Tester said. 

To donate or learn how to volunteer in western North Carolina, check out Appalachian Rebuilt Project (ARP) or appalachianrebuildproject.org. ARP was created by western NC native and former Beaufort County resident Sophia Phillips. 

Phillips will be in Belhaven on Thursday, Nov. 21 for a fundraiser, buffet dinner at Spoon River. At the dinner, she will give a presentation on what she has experienced and seen in her town of Green Mountain. Tickets must be purchased in advance. All proceeds from the dinner will go to ARP. Tickets can be purchased at: 

https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/spoon-river-fundraiser-for-western-nc?fbclid=IwY2xjawGkbtxleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHeTPJYUiwlE0wY2Man_Ido_nJj5tvn69Y-Z8aPK3XPs2VxQuLUSaVT_JHw_aem_hE0A9sEDu1YkX1kLmjcR8Q