ASHEVILLE – Over the next 48 hours, 15,000 homes in Buncombe County alone are expected to be impacted by flooding resulting from Hurricane Helene and the heavy rainstorm that preceded it, Buncombe County officials said during a Sept. 26 joint emergency response update with Henderson County officials. The National Weather Service and local authorities expect the region could experience floods that “rival or surpass” the floods of 1916, setting the region up for a historic period of severe weather.
The county has already asked residents, businesses and visitors in Biltmore Village and Fletcher to self-evacuate. Buncombe County Manager Avril Pinder suggested that all people who know they are within a flood-prone area should “take action.” Helene is expected to hit Asheville this evening, Thursday, Sept. 26, and will likely have cleared out by Friday night, Sept. 27, the Citizen Times reported.
“If you live in a flood prone area — even if we didn’t mention it — you should take action now. Right now,” Pinder said. The county currently provides two shelters: one at First Baptist Church Swannanoa and another at Trinity Baptist Church.
The county is currently working to develop maps of possible flood impacts to indicate whether residents should evacuate, the county announced in a Sept. 26 news release.
Buncombe County Emergency Services Assistant Director Ryan Cole said the county has received about nine inches of rain and the department expects both the Swannanoa River and the French Broad River will “exceed flood stage and be at record levels” before Hurricane Helene is over. Cole said the rivers are not expected to crest — meaning reach their highest — until Sept. 28.
More: Hurricane Helene strengthens to Category 3: Track it, see when it will reach Western NC
Cole said they have already performed six water rescues and that part of Woodfin Water Services have also been impacted by the predecessor storm that has already led to flooding across the area. Cole said that Duke Energy expects power outages to “significantly increase” over the night of Sept. 26.
“To be clear, we are asking everyone in the river valleys to self-evacuate before this storm continues to increase and the rivers get out of their banks,” Cole said, noting that the expected storm is likely to cause a “500-year flood,” meaning only two events like it have likely happened in the past 1000 years.
“Make sure that you bring sleeping bags and blankets from your homes and things that will make you comfortable as you are in a shelter,” Cole said, encouraging those staying at home to have food and water prepared for the next 72 hours
North Carolina Highway Patrol Sgt. Robby Baker said that while major thoroughfares across Buncombe County are open, their “conditions are rapidly declining” and encouraged all to follow road updates online at drivenc.gov as road conditions will get “progressively worse” throughout the night. Baker said the Highway Patrol will be out “in full force” to respond to calls.
Buncombe County is providing live updates on shelter and weather services on their website at www.buncombecounty.org and residents can sign up for Buncombe County Alerts by texting “BCAlert” to 99411. The non-emergency line is (828) 250 6650. The county is also working with the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority to work with hotel and lodging partners to provide reservations for residents impacted by Hurricane Helene.
Henderson County encourages safety
Henderson County is also under a state of emergency as the Henderson County Manager John Mitchell and Henderson Emergency Services Director Jimmy Brissie addressed the public, noting the county is “seeing areas flood that we’ve never seen flood before.” The county is currently using 500-year flood maps to indicate areas where residents should be ready to evacuate.
“We are using the 500-year flood plain maps as kind-of a guide. That’s all it is,” Brissie said, noting that current evacuation locations are not “set in stone” as the county is seeing “areas flood that we’ve never seen flood before.” Brissie advocated for all in Henderson County who live within the river valleys to make a plan.
Henderson County is providing live updates to emergency information online, and is offering a phone line to answer resident questions at (828) 771-6670.
More: Hurricane Helene: Western NC high-impact road closures in Asheville, I-26 flooding
More: Self-evacuate: Fletcher, Biltmore Village residents urged to leave river areas ahead of Helene
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 WHofmann@citizentimes.com. Consider supporting this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Hurricane Helene will bring a 500-year flood to Western NC: officials
