Nearly three months ago to the day, Hurricane Helene ravaged western North Carolina, leaving thousands of people displaced and taking the lives of hundreds more.
The massive storm made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region as a category 4 hurricane. It continued moving north, joining forces with an already-stalled front in North Carolina’s mountain region to create what many people call a “freak geological event.”
With as much as 30 inches of rain pouring down in some parts of rural North Carolina, residents were completely unprepared for the massive devastation that struck the region.
“When we have hurricanes in Florida, they make a mess and we clean it up, but we still have roads and we still have the same topography of the land. In North Carolina? The topography has totally changed. The mountains slid down and the creeks have moved,” said Natalie Peery, who calls both Florida and North Carolina home. “I don’t know how to express how truly horrible it is.”
Peery divides her time between her home in Ponte Vedra Beach and her two farms in Avery County, North Carolina. The hurricane hit while Peery was staying in Ponte Vedra, but after hearing how terrible the destruction was in her home county, she quickly loaded a truck with supplies and made her first run back to North Carolina just three days after the storm hit.
“I don’t think anybody could have ever been prepared for what happened,” Peery said, reflecting on the sheer level of ruin. “Someone who used to live in the forest now has a wide-open view, because the trees are just gone.”
Residents fled up mountains and onto rooftops as small, winding creeks morphed into wide, angry rivers, eating everything in their path. Roads and bridges were washed away, leaving residents stranded even in the aftermath of the storm. Some small North Carolinian cities were completely wiped off the map.
Peery mentioned that independent organizations such as Samaritan's Purse and the Cajun Navy have done their best to keep residents fed and cared for, but there’s not as much assistance in helping residents get reestablished in their homes.
“I realized after going up there that people needed roads and driveways because even if their actual house didn’t get swept away, they couldn’t get in and out of the property. They’d have to park their car or ATV and hike,” Peery said. “So I recruited the help of a local friend, an excavator, to help with the work and recruited a friend in Ponte Vedra to help me fundraise.”
The excavator in Avery County volunteered his time and manual labor at no cost to residents, so long as Peery could fundraise the money to purchase gravel.
Peery reached out to fellow North Floridian Chip Davis, the tournament director of the Flounder Pounder Fishing Tournament, to propose a fundraising initiative at his October 2024 event. Davis agreed, and with support from Ponte Vedra residents, Peery successfully raised nearly $10,000 to purchase gravel.
In the time since this fundraiser, Peery has revisited Avery County many times to assist with the excavation of driveways for local residents.
“Right now in the mountains, three months later, there are still cars upside down on the sides of the road. Every time I go and see it, I still can’t believe it,” Peery said.
The towns of western North Carolina continue efforts to reopen grocery stores, post offices, restaurants, and rebuild homes. The massive storm left many residents grieving the loss of loved ones and entire livelihoods.
With winter setting in, many residents without homes are seeking refuge in temporary shelters, enduring the harsh conditions. Determined to help her small town regain a sense of normalcy, Peery is offering gravel driveways at no cost to those in need.
If you’d like to support Peery’s efforts, all donations will go directly toward purchasing gravel for these driveways. Contact Peery at ncj001@gmail.com.
