HAYWOOD COUNTY, N.C. — One person remains missing in Haywood County days after flash flooding hit the area. Two people were found alive Saturday night. Five people died in this mountain county west of Asheville.
A steady flow of Department of Transportation dump trucks hauled debris from the hardest hit areas in Haywood County.
Highway Patrol officers man check points up the road into the Cruso community, where floodwaters washed mobile homes away and knocked houses off foundations, and where search and rescue teams are still looking for the missing.
Officials said more than 200 searchers were deployed Saturday, the fourth day of rescue efforts in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Fred.
All five of the dead were in the Cruso community along the Pigeon River: Frank Mungo, 86, Charlene Mungo, 83, Franklin McKenzie, 68, Judy Mason, 73, and Frank Lauer Sr., 74.
Heavy rains from Tropical Depression Fred brought torrential rain to the North Carolina mountains Tuesday. The rain caused flash flooding and mudslides in the mountains, with the worst reported in Haywood, Buncombe and Transylvania counties.
Haywood was the hardest hit, accounting for much of the damage and all of the fatalities. Officials still aren't sure how many people were displaced by the flooding.
Haywood County Schools are operating on a two-hour delay Monday, Aug. 23.
"If attending school is not a possibility, right now, for any reason, please know that we are going to go above and beyond to help you," Superintendent Bill Nolte wrote in a letter to parents. "We will excuse absences, waive missed days related to promotion, provide supplies and materials and provide additional tutorial help if it is needed."
Nolte urged parents to reach out to their child's school and let them know their situation.
The flooding damaged and destroyed much of Canton, along the Pigeon River, including the police station, the fire department and the high school football field.
Much of Canton is still caked in mud. People worked to clean up schools, the hospital and the rest of the town.
"Heavy equipment teams are moving into the area and beginning the process of clearing the largest debris piles," Haywood County said Saturday.
On the ridges above Haywood County, going up to the Blue Ridge Parkway, the evidence of flash floods and mudslides is everywhere. The DOT had trucks with snow plows attached in Pisgah National Forest to clear mud from roads. Crews were out in the national forest repairing damage to the long, steep roads over the ridge.
Western North Carolina communities, especially in Haywood County, will have a long road ahead to clear the debris, fix the roads and rebuild their homes and businesses. However, as of Sunday afternoon power has been restored to 95% of the Cruso community, according to the county.
There is a shelter for flood victims at Canton First Baptist church, located at 74 Academy Street in Canton.