For many people in Western North Carolina, everything changed on Friday, Sept. 27, 2024.
Hurricane Helene brought record levels of rainfall, reaching as high as 30 inches in some places and triggering massive flooding and mudslides. Roads, buildings, trees, power lines and entire water systems were wiped out, affecting hundreds of thousands of people. More than 90 people died in North Carolina.
In the immediate aftermath of the historic storm, the country’s attention turned to Western North Carolina. Media outlets extensively covered the destruction, and the circulation of information and news coming out of the region was overwhelming.
The Ledger launched a free pop-up newsletter called “Mountain Updates” on Oct. 1 to sort through the news and round up the need-to-know information in a clear and concise format. Ledger staff writer Lindsey Banks, who is a Buncombe County native and has friends and family in Western North Carolina, spearheads the newsletter, which started out daily for two weeks and is now sent out twice weekly.
Now, since national and statewide media’s focus has shifted from Western North Carolina, updates are harder to come by, which is why The Ledger plans to continue the pop-up newsletter until it’s no longer necessary.
On this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Ledger editor Tony Mecia sits down with Banks to talk about:
her experience growing up in the mountains
what it was like seeing her hometown destroyed by the hurricane
what her friends and family have described in the aftermath
the long-term outlook for the region
how she puts together The Ledger’s Mountain Updates newsletter
All issues of Mountain Updates can be found online here. If you’re not on The Ledger’s email list, you can sign up for Mountain Updates and other newsletters at TheCharlotteLedger.com. Ledger subscribers can sign up for Mountain Updates on their account settings page.
Lindsey Banks produces The Charlotte Ledger Podcast.
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Checking in on the N.C. mountains