ASHEVILLE – As a massive rain system already dropped nearly 8 inches at the Asheville Regional Airport, Hurricane Helene is expected to bring an additional 3 to 6 inches of rain after 8 p.m. Sept. 26, setting up the region for what is likely to be a “historic” weather event for the region, Buncombe County officials said during a Sept. 26 press conference.
So far, the Asheville Regional Airport has received 7.74 inches of rain, according to Buncombe County Emergency Services Director Taylor Jones said during a Sept. 26 Buncombe County press conference. As Helene has not even hit Western North Carolina, the area is expected to receive far more rain.
“Overall, an additional 9 to 14 inches are predicted for Buncombe County over the next 48 hours,” Jones said. “This is historic for us.”
The county is currently in a state of emergency, which is set to expire
“It is not common for the National Weather Service to use words like ‘catastrophic’ to describe forecasts,” Buncombe County Manager Avril Pinder said. “When they do that, we should all take heed.”
Wind gust predictions currently set the strongest winds, which will begin after 10 p.m. tonight, at 64 miles per hours, Jones said. It’s likely to cause power outages across the region, Jones said.
“When the high winds come in, we expect there will be more,” Jones said, noting that approximately 6,000 power outages happened the night of Sept. 25.
“This is a potential historic event with possible deadly consequences,” he said later on in the press conference.
Rivers are already flooding from the rain system that came to the area the afternoon of Sept. 25. The French Broad River is already in “minor flood stage,” rising to almost 10 feet in the past 24 hours, Jones said. It’s expected to reach moderate flood levels at 15.5 feet by late tomorrow evening. The Swannanoa River is also in minor flood stage, currently at over 10 feet, Jones said. It’s also expected to reach moderate flood levels the evening of Sept. 27.
“If you are in an area that has past history of flooding, it will flood during this storm,” Jones said.
Currently, Buncombe County has one emergency shelter open at the Swannanoa Baptist Church at 502 Park St. At 3 p.m., an additional emergency shelter will open a second shelter at Trinity Baptist Church that is located at 216 Shelburne Road. Residents should have food and water prepared for the next 72 hours, Jones said.
The county has also issued a “Code Purple” — a code typically reserved for winter months — where those who are homeless and unhoused will be offered transportation to a shelter, Jones said.
“This is a very serious storm with possible deadly consequences,” Jones said.
Additionally, some mudslides have happened in the region as well, but the events have been “short, temporary issues” but show that the “potential threat of mudslides is very high,” Jones said.
Flooding is one of the largest concerns, where rising rivers could endanger county residents. Jones said those who live in areas that routinely flood should evacuate.
“If you live near places that routinely flood, please relocate with neighbors, friends, to higher locations,” Jones said.
Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at [email protected]. Consider supporting this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Hurricane Helene in Western NC: Potentially ‘historic’ as 7″ rain fell
