Crews are working around the clock to restore the mountain community of Chimney Rock, which was nearly wiped off the map by Helene.

Several homes and businesses on Main Street (U.S. Hwy 64/74), including the road itself, were washed away when the Rocky Broad River swelled and mudslides followed.

What You Need To Know

  • Helene caused Main Street (U.S. Hwy 64/74) in Chimney Rock to collapse due to the Rocky Broad River overflowing

  • The NCDOT has reopened nearly 900 roads across Western North Carolina since the storm

  • They’ve restored a mile of Hwy 64/74, providing locals with a temporary access road to their homes

That river is typically 50 to 70 feet wide, according to Nathan Moneyham, construction engineer with the North Carolina Department of Transportation. But, in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, the floodwaters expanded to 200 feet in some areas, he said.

“In the initial aftermath of the storm, the river was where the road was. So, in order to restore access to these homes and communities along this stretch of 64/74, the first step was to move the river,” Moneyham said. “What we’ve done is a temporary relocation. Using survey data that we had prior to the storm, we tried to approximate the river location just to create room to build some temporary roads.”

During a media briefing Friday, Moneyham said contractors have restored about a mile of the nearly three miles of Hwy 64 that Helene decimated. That stretch of road connects Chimney Rock to Bat Cave.

Tracy Reef with Spokes of Hope is doing her best to refurbish businesses that are still standing, like the local souvenir shop, Gales. She traveled all the way from Indiana to not only help rebuild, but to share words of encouragement.

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer,” she recited Romans 12:12. Reef and her team have written that scripture on businesses they’re working to repair. She said it is much easier said than done for business and homeowners to start over in other ways.

“It is hard when you’re in this, and they just feel like they’re not getting anywhere,” she said.

Moneyham said crews are still working to provide direct access to people’s homes. He said they’ll have to move the Rocky Broad River again depending on the longterm plan for Hwy 64 restoration. He said that will be determined in months to come once they lock in a contract for permanent road work. Right now, that road is only partially open for residents.