The remnants of Hurricane Helene hit western North Carolina Friday, bringing significant flooding and damage. The storm left many residents without power, water or cell service.
In the days since, federal, state and local governments have worked to help the area recover. Also helping are numerous private companies and individuals.
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Here is information about food, shelter, power and donation sites in McDowell, Burke, Catawba and Iredell counties and surrounding areas.
Meals, shelters for flood victims in western NC
Grace Community Church will be providing hot meals at 5182 U.S. 70 West in Marion. Lunch will be served from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Dinner will be served from 4-5:30 p.m.
Local emergency shelters are listed below:
- Glenwood Baptist Church — 155 Glenwood Church Road in Marion
- Marion Senior Center— 100 Spauling Road in Marion
- YMCA of Marion— 438 Grace Corpening Drive in Marion
- Oak Hill Methodist Church— 2239 N.C. 181 in Morganton
- West Caldwell High School— 300 West Caldwell Drive in Lenoir
- First Baptist Church Hildebran -- 8831 Old N.C. Highway 10 in Hildebran
Food, water, supplies in McDowell County
Numerous agencies from all across McDowell County continue to assist McDowell County Emergency Management with points of distribution. These places will operate daily from 10 a.m. to noon and 4-6 p.m., depending on available supplies. The locations are as follows:
- Hicks Chapel Church — 6008 U.S. Hwy. 221 N. in Marion
- Former TJ’s Discount— 8153 U.S. Hwy. 221 N. in Marion
- Old Fort Town Hall — 38 Catawba Ave. in Old Fort
- New Manna Baptist Church— 225 E. Court St. in Marion
- Solid Rock Free Will Baptist Church— 7860 N.C. Hwy. 226 S. in Nebo
Hurricane Helene flooding left Marion restaurant caked in mud. "We’re just at a loss."
"Everybody’s got so much loss and worry as it is, them coming back to work is one of our biggest priorities, and I don’t know how to do it.”
Food, water and ice in Burke County
Burke County has set up a donation and distribution location at Foothills Higher Education Center in Morganton. The center is at 2128 S. Sterling St., Morganton.
Donations are being accepted from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day and will be distributing needed items from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day.
The county is offering free bags of ice at four locations:
- Old Kmart parking lot— 110 Bost Road, Morganton
- Fiddlers Run Shopping Center— 160 Fidler Run Blvd., Morganton
- Brentwood Water Corporation— 1911 Jamestown Road, Morganton
- Foothills Thrift Store — 2886 U.S. Hwy. 17, Morganton
This Burke County family has lived along the Catawba River since 1948. Helene destroyed their homes.
“I thought, ‘This can’t be true.’ I just laughed. I laughed. And this morning I woke up weeping. ... Then I couldn’t do anything but weep," Jim Morgan said.
Other locations distributing food in Burke County:
- Foothills High Education Building -- 2128 S. Sterling St. in Morganton
- Burke United Christian Ministries -- 305-B West Union St. in Morganton
- Bilingual/bilingüe: Law Office of Victor N. Yamouti -- 216 E Concord St. in Morganton
- The Rock Church -- 4806 U.S. 64 in Morganton
- Morganton First Church of God -- 675 Summers Road in Morganton (Breakfast at 9 a.m.; Dinner at 5 p.m.)
- Glen Alpine Fire Department -- 103 Pitts St. in Morganton
- Pregnancy Care Center of Morganton -- 113 Clay St. in Morganton (Free diapers and wipes.)
- Maynard Electric Company -- 117 Dugout Circle in Morganton
- George Hildebran Fire/Rescue -- 7470 George Hildebran School Road in Connelly Springs
- Longtown Fire Department -- 7765 South Mountain Institute Road in Nebo
- Enola Fire/Rescue -- 2510 Enola Road in Morganton
- Jonas Ridge Fire Department -- 8224 Buckeye Hollow Road in Newland
These locations are offering showers and charging stations:
- Phifer YMCA -- 2165 S. Sterling St. in Morganton
- First Baptist Church Hildebran -- 8831 Old N.C. Highway 10 in Hildebran
Animal food:
- Burke Animal Services -- 425 Kirksey Drive in Morganton (Wednesday 10 a.m. - 1p.m. while supplies last)
- Viewmont Animal Hospital -- 2870 Second Street NE in Hickory (supplies will be dropped off on Friday at 10 a.m.)
Where to donate for flood relief in western NC
Looking to donate food, clothes or toiletries to flood victims in western North Carolina? Here are donation sites in Catawba, Caldwell, Burke, Iredell and McDowell counties.
Do not take donations to the Hickory Regional Airport. Officials are asking that donations be taken to the Appalachian State University campus in Hickory instead.
Several sites around the Catawba Valley are collecting donations:
- N.C. State Highway Patrol station— 3265 U.S. Highway 70 SE in Conover
- Appalachian State University Hickory -- 800 17th St. NW in Hickory (Take here instead of the Hickory Regional Airport)
- Catawba County United Way office — 2760 Tate Blvd. SE in Hickory
- WHKY office— 526 Main Ave. SE in Hickory
- Conover Fire Department, Station No. 3— 1776 Village Square NW in Conover
- Hickory Motor Speedway— 3130 U.S. Highway 70 SE in Newton
- Lenoir-Rhyne University Shuford Gym -- 755 Fifth St. NE in Hickory (Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.)
- Klingspor Abrasives— 2566 Third Ave. NW in Hickory
- University Christian High School -- 602 7th Ave. NE in Hickory
- Brookford Police Department lobby— 1700 S. Center St. in Hickory
- Long View Town Hall— 2404 First Ave. SW in Long View (Until Oct. 7)
- Adrian L. Shuford Jr. YMCA— 1104 Conover Blvd. E. in Conover
- Hickory Foundation YMCA— 701 First St. NW in Hickory
- Lincoln County Family YMCA— 1402 Gaston St. in Lincolnton
- Sally’s YMCA— 1601 Forney Creek Parkway in Denver
- Phifer Family YMCA— 2165 S. Sterling St. in Morganton
- Lower Creek Baptist Church — 633 Lower Creek Drive in Lenoir (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
- Mooresville Fire-Rescue -- 128 N. Broad Street in Mooresville (On Saturday from 2 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
- Statesville Regional Airport — 238 Airport Road in Statesville (8 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day)
- Statesville Fire Department Station No. 1— 822 Fifth St. in Statesville
- Statesville Fire Department Station No. 2— 110 Security Drive in Statesville
- Statesville Fire Department Station No. 3— 779 Eastside Drive in Statesville
- Statesville Fire Department Station No. 4— 115 Martin Lane in Statesville
- Universal Advanced Manufacturing Center— 634 College Drive in Marion
- Foothills Higher Education Center— 2128 S. Sterling St. in Morganton
- Winkler's Grove Baptist Church -- 3320 Ninth Ave. Drive in Hickory
- Maiden Police Department -- 400 E. Main St. in Maiden
- Maiden Town Hall -- 19 N. Main Ave. in Maiden
- Maiden Fire Department -- 110 W. Main St. in Maiden
- Johnson's Milling & Feed -- 8810 U.S. Highway 64/90 W in Taylorsville (Offering discounts on donations purchased from the store)
Catawba County deputies help with rescues in Yancey, McDowell and jails in Burke, Buncombe
See photos of the Catawba County Sheriff's Office efforts in Yancey County.
Items needed for flood victims
Don’t know what to donate? Here is a list of items that local donations sites are requesting.
- Powdered drink mix packets
- Bottled water
- Baby formula/baby food
- Nonperishable food items
- Plastic utensils
- Paper plates/cups
- Manual can openers
- Toiletries
- Toothbrushes/toothpaste
- Instant coffee
- Hand sanitizer
- Baby wipes
- Diapers for adults/children
- Sanitizing wipes
- Feminine hygiene products
- Bug spray
- Sunscreen
- Nonprescription medication (Mooresville Fire-Rescue only)
- First aid supplies
- Dog/cat food
- Cat litter
- New clothes
- Unopened socks of all sizes
- Blankets
- Pillows
- Towels
- Heavy-duty work gloves
- Nitrile gloves
- Plastic tarps
- Cleaning supplies
- Trash bags 13-gallon or bigger
- Batteries
- Flashlights
- Chain saws (Brookford Police Department only)
- Propane (Winkler's Grove Baptist Church only)
- Box fans
- Full gas and diesel cans (Winkler's Grove Baptist Church only)
For farms in need
- Square bales of hay
- Solar chargers
- Step-in fence posts
- Polywire
- Other temporary fencing
Statesville Fire Departments are not accepting used clothes, water, fuel or flammable items, most chemicals including bleach, or hazardous materials. Other sites are not accepting glass items.
At Hickory Regional Airport, volunteers, military provide aid to western NC
“Here’s the truth: We’re doing something that hasn’t been done before, especially in this area. We’re basically taking a civilian rotorcraft operation and making it, basically, a military operation."
North Carolina Helene disaster relief funds
Want to donate money to help Hurricane Helene victims? Here are two official relief funds for North Carolina.
Monetary donations can be made to the N.C. Department of Public Safety’s disaster relief fund at nc.gov/donate.
Burke United Way is accepting monetary donations at bcuw.org/hurricane.
The foothills Food Hub/McDowell Local Food Advisory Council is accepting monetary donations at foothillsfoodhub.org/donate.
The North Carolina United Way is also accepting monetary donations through NC 211 at unitedwaync.org.
Power outages in Catawba Valley
Nearly 65% of McDowell County was without power on Tuesday at 10:45 a.m. There were 19,562 customers out of 30,262 with no power, according to PowerOutages.us.
Half of Burke County residents still had no power as of Tuesday. As of 10:45 a.m., 21,853 out of 43,519 customers were without power, according to PowerOutages.us.
Nearly 40% of Caldwell County remained without power as of 10:45 a.m. on Tuesday. Out of 42,228 customers, 16,134 still did not have power, according to PowerOutages.us.
On Tuesday, 9,836 customers out of 82,391 in Catawba County were still without power, according to PowerOutages.us.
On Tuesday, 1,643 customers out of 19,481 in Alexander County were still without power, according to PowerOutages.us.
Town Tavern destroyed by Hurricane Helene flooding from Catawba River
“It’s devastating. It’s pretty sad to see,” one owner said.
Report missing people in McDowell County
If you or someone you know is in need of assistance, call the Helene Hotline at 828-652-3241. The 24/7 volunteer operators are standing by to help. The hotline can be used for the following:
1. Report missing or stranded persons
2. Request transportation to a shelter
3. Report urgent medical equipment needs (oxygen, life-saving medication)
4. Any other questions or concerns
How to apply for FEMA assistance
Did you experience damage from Tropical Storm Helene? If you live in Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes or Yancey counties or are a tribal member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, FEMA may be able to help with serious needs, displacement, home repair or other expenses.
To apply, go online toDisasterAssistance.gov, use the FEMA app for mobile devices or call 800-621-3362.
Sarah Johnson is the courts and breaking news reporter for the Hickory Daily Record.
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