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Six weeks later, the work is nowhere near done in Western North Carolina

Much of the hardest hit areas in Western North Carolina still look like they did the day Helene hit.

SWANNANOA, N.C. — Box by box, Alan Cunningham is sifting through his waterlogged belongings.

The shed behind his house held years’ worth of stuff, now caked in mud after Helene flooded his Yancey County property. He was in his house when the storm hit.

"When I saw it at 6:30 Friday morning, it was no big deal,” Cunningham said. “At 7:30 it was five feet deep in here and me and the dog were on the stairs upstairs."

His neighbor took some startling pictures of the water line halfway up Cunningham’s front door.

Credit: Alan Cunningham
Hurricane Helene flooded this home in Burnsville

Was he concerned? "I was at peace,” Cunningham admits. “Because I'm a strong believer in God and he's going to take care of me and if I go or I stay, I'm fine."

Also taking care of him in the days that followed were Samaritan's Purse volunteers who just showed up one day and emptied out his entire first floor.

"Then they proceeded to tear down the paneling and the sheetrock and pull the floors up and then they sprayed the whole house for mold before they left two and a half days later," Cunningham said.

He said he was grateful for the help and focused on rebuilding.

Driving through the mountains, it's easy to see, much of the damage remains. Even more than a month later, some areas looked like Helene just hit. It's not for a lack of help. Everywhere we looked, we saw teams of people working to get things back to normal.

An hour west, in the small town of Marshall, the National Guard is very visible right now.

"A lot of what you're hearing in the background is the big trucks that are moving, they're washing the streets, they're emptying the basements, they want to work,” said Chris Worley, manager of Shady Side Florist in downtown Marshall.

"All of our materials, all of our stations, all of our equipment, 50 years of business was gone overnight,” Worley said.

Rising water filled the buildings downtown until the pressure couldn't hold anymore, shattering storefront windows.

"It basically just flushed everything like a toilet, took everything out of the buildings and down the river," Worley reflected.

Credit: Chris Worley

Photos immediately after the storm are alarming when you see how the town along the French Broad River normally looks.

Photos have also been top of mind for Sarah Decker. "It's a real honor to be able to make art during this difficult time.”

The local artist was taking Tintype photographs around town, printing photos onto metal, giving them an old, classic look.

"I'm doing the same technology that would've been used during the 1916 flood,” Decker said, pledging to do something for the town after Helene destroyed an art studio where she used to have space.

"I kind of just put my darkroom in the back of my Subaru and drove down here last week," Decker said.

Countless others have felt called to help. Like in Swannanoa, where volunteers feed storm victims every day.

"We don't have a grocery store locally so we're just really grateful to be relying on the good nature of our community to feed us,” said Rebecca Dancyger who was enjoying a meal of chili on the day we were there.

Dancyger was on both sides. She's helping get people back on their feet, while also needing help from others.

"We are heavily and completely relying on the water that's being provided right here,” Dancyger said. “Without that, we wouldn't be able to do anything, wash our hands, prepare small meals or even coffee in our homes."

"There aren't as many resources here so it feels like it's going to be a long, long stay in this site,” added Amanda Frizz Krause.

She’s one of the many people who helped transform Blunt Pretzels into a daily feeding site. It hasn't been easy, both physically and emotionally.

"We served a family funeral that had 11 family members die in just one family,” Krause reflected.

It's a sobering reminder of the devastation that spread across dozens of counties and a reality that life will not get back to normal for a while.

Credit: WFMY News 2

"Our water is still coming out brown, so I feel until we have security around water, I don't think it'll really feel better,” admitted Dancyger.

Even with so much left to do six weeks later, many remain optimistic, and appreciative of the help and of their neighbors.

"I'm definitely heart-focused and wear my heart on my sleeve and I just want to give people hugs a lot of the time,” Krause said.

"Every day has been a good progression, and I've got nothing to complain about,” Cunningham said.

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