MORGANTON, N.C. — Gov. Roy Cooper reaffirmed his commitment to helping western North Carolina rebuild from Hurricane Helene's devastation during a meeting with local government leaders in Morganton on Friday.
The governor has made numerous trips to western North Carolina in the aftermath of Helene, speaking with residents and officials about the state and federal response.
He spoke at a meeting hosted by the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners, the NC League of Municipalities and the five councils of governments representing the western region.
Helene caused an estimated $53 billion in damage across these state, claiming the lives of 102 people. Cooper said the storm was more than three times costlier than Hurricane Florence, which devastated eastern North Carolina in 2018.
"None of us expected the deadliest and most devastating storm in the history of our state to occur, but it has," Cooper said. "I know that you are committed to making sure that western North Carolina recovers."
On Friday, Cooper's comments were all about ensuring his administration will remain focused on Helene recovery until he leaves office in January. He also stressed the importance of state and federal government with assisting small businesses and homeowners pick up the pieces as the long recovery process shifts into winter.
"You have my firm commitment to making this challenge my top priority, as it has been for the last month," Cooper said. "This will be, has been and will continue to be my No. 1 priority."
The governor said he's spoken with Gov.-elect Josh Stein and President Joe Biden on a regular basis about the state's needs. He emphasized helping Stein understand lessons learned from previous storms to better assist impacted communities.
"I want to make sure we have a blueprint and a foundation for them," Cooper said. "There's been a number of disasters in this state, hurricanes, things we've learned to make this better."
The meeting on Friday was co-hosted by Foothills Regional Commission, High Country Council of Governments, Land of Sky Regional Council, Southwestern Commission Council of Governments and Western Piedmont Council of Governments.
Cooper visited Blowing Rock and Banner Elk last Friday, touring the latter with country star Eric Church. During a media briefing, Church shared how his foundation plans to use the money raised by the Concert for Carolina to help communities still reeling from Helene. Church said it's a priority for him to keep folks in western North Carolina throughout the recovery process.
"The sense of community, I know how strong that is because I've been here," Church said. "We're going to try to keep people in their community. Give them a home where their church is, where their school is, so they continue to build it from the inside out."
Meanwhile, many parts of western North Carolina have reopened for tourism as the fall leaf season reaches its closing stages. Several portions of the Blue Ridge Parkway have reopened and mountain towns are encouraging folks to come spend their money to help struggling businesses. Cooper joined that chorus during his Blowing Rock trip, pleading with North Carolinians to support their neighbors during their time of need.