Two Years After Deadly Hurricane Helene, Residents Rebuild in Flood Zones Despite Risks

Two years after Hurricane Helene devastated North Carolina, killing over 250 people and leaving hundreds of thousands without power or drinking water for weeks, many residents are still living in flood-prone areas. The storm's aftermath has highlighted a significant gap in federal flood policy that allows people to move into mobile home parks where homes were previously washed away.

In Asheville, the largest city in western North Carolina, Hurricane Helene left residents without drinking water for 53 days. The region’s typically porous soils became saturated by recent rainfall, causing rainwater to race down steep mountain slopes and overrunning normally shallow creeks and rivers. One out of every four deaths from the storm in North Carolina was due to mudslides and landslides.

Jesse Barber, a reporter for ProPublica and The Assembly, has covered natural disasters across multiple states, including California, Arizona, and Texas. In his recent story, he highlighted how federal flood policies are failing to protect mobile home residents who continue to live in harm's way. For instance, Joe Rogers moved into a riverfront mobile home park in Haywood County in 2006, despite the land being at risk of flooding but not officially designated as part of the 100-year floodplain.

In 2024, Hurricane Helene caused devastating floods that swept away homes and took lives. Rogers' wife, Sandra, was one of the victims when her mobile home was lifted off its foundation by rapidly rising river water and carried downstream for miles before she could be rescued. This tragedy echoes a similar incident in 2004 when Hurricane Frances hit the same area, forcing Dave Masters to watch as his father's mobile home was swept away.

Despite these repeated disasters, local authorities have not taken adequate steps to relocate residents from high-risk areas. When Haywood County sought properties to buy out after the 2004 floods, it opted to purchase homes across the river but left the mobile home park untouched. As a result, new residents moved into harm's way without proper protection or warning.

When asked about allowing residents to live near rivers again, Haywood County’s recovery officer admitted he was unaware of the possibility of buying out entire mobile home parks as part of flood mitigation efforts. North Carolina Emergency Management stated that such buyouts are treated no differently from those involving individual properties and urged property owners to participate actively in these programs.

The ongoing lack of action has left many questioning why federal and state agencies have not implemented stricter measures to prevent future tragedies. The policy gap and bureaucratic inertia continue to put vulnerable communities at risk, highlighting the need for more robust disaster preparedness and recovery strategies that prioritize public safety over economic considerations.

This situation underscores broader issues in natural disaster management and highlights the urgent need for improved floodplain regulations and support systems for low-income residents who often have no other affordable housing options. As climate change increases the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, addressing these vulnerabilities becomes increasingly critical to saving lives and reducing long-term recovery costs.