All down the line: Bill seeks to help local railroads affected by Hurricane Helene
Blue Ridge Southern Railroad locomotives sit idling in Frog Level’s Richland Creek as Hurricane Helene passes through on Sept. 27, 2024. Cory Vaillancourt photo
Highways, roads and bridges weren’t the only components of transportation infrastructure impacted by Hurricane Helene last fall. Now, a pair of Western North Carolina legislators have filed a bill in the North Carolina General Assembly to help a pair of railroads get back on track.
“The impact of Hurricane Helene was extensive to the rail networks in Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee,” said Tracie VanBecelaere, a spokesperson for Watco, the company that owns Blue Ridge Southern Railroad. “For the Blue Ridge Southern Railroad, recovery costs top $18 million, and work is ongoing to restore the railroad.”
Blue Ridge Southern Railroad is what’s known as a short-line freight railroad, with just 87 miles of track running from East Flat Rock to Asheville, through Canton and on to Sylva and Dillsboro.
It’s been a tough few years for Blue Ridge Southern. After sustaining damage during Tropical Storm Fred in 2021, the railroad lost its largest customer — Pactiv Evergreen’s paper mill — in June 2023. Then Hurricane Helene dealt a serious blow in September 2024, disrupting operations.
“Blue Ridge had a lot of damage, just like they did with Fred,” said Rep. Mark Pless (R-Haywood), one the co-sponsors of the bill. “They had just gotten back running, and they have spent some money, but they have some grants. And if I’m not mistaken, the fund that that’s supposed to come out of is 50/50, so whatever amount that they choose that they need, they would have to foot the bill for half of that.”
Pless said Blue Ridge has had difficulty serving customers west of Canton, including Sylva’s Jackson Paper. In mid-February, service was partially restored to Premier Magnesia in Frog Level; however, raw materials coming from Knoxville unable to ship via rail.
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The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad is another kind of railroad altogether. With just 53 miles of track, GSMR carries passengers, not cargo, and has been a major tourist attraction in the region for nearly four decades. It too suffered damage from Helene.
“Due to the storm, it was necessary to cancel our Nantahala Gorge Excursions which depart from Bryson City west bound to Nantahala. Those trips were cancelled for three days, Sept. 27, 28 and 29,” said Kimberly Albritton, vice president and general manager of the GSMR. “There were two mudslides along that route that we were able to clear and begin operating again on Monday, Sept. 30.”
There was also substantial track damage due to washouts on the Tuckasegee River route, which runs from Bryson City to Dillsboro, and debris piled up against bridges from Dillsboro to Andrews. GSMR maintenance crews and subcontractors began removal immediately
The railroad’s Baldwin 2-8-0 Consolidation steam locomotive, No. 1702, had just finished its 92-day boiler wash and inspection and was scheduled to begin pulling leaf-looking trains along the Nantahala Gorge route on Oct. 1; however, due to unstable track conditions on the Tuckasegee River route, GSMR was unable to move the locomotive safely from its Dillsboro shop to Bryson City. Service was restored on Oct. 10.
Rising storm water did reach the first-stair level inside GSMR’s office building in Bryson City and completely washed out the railyard and parking lot. It also washed out the railyard and parking lot in Dillsboro, but spared buildings there.
“As far as what still needs fixed, we have concentrated on hauling railroad ballast from the Nantahala quarry immediately following the storm and continue to do so,” Albritton said. “I expect that we will continue to haul, dump and surface track with more ballast well into June of this year to improve overall track conditions supporting ties and rail.”
Economic impact to the railroad continues, Albritton explained.
“Ridership was reduced by over 35,000 visitors as compared to 2023 from Sept. 27 through Dec. 31, 2024,” she said. “Combining track infrastructure materials and labor and the reduction of passenger ridership we have lost over $4 million between September and December of 2024. 2025 passenger ridership remains soft. We are working with our local attractions, chambers, TDA and Smoky Mountain Host to build an awareness that Western North Carolina is open for business.“
Additionally, Albritton says GSMR spent more than $40,000 helping employees with damage to their homes and property, as well as the loss of work hours.
Although GSMR is now 100% operational according to Albritton, she expects 2025 ridership to remain soft, citing news reports and social media posts that have made some visitors apprehensive about visiting the area even today.
“On a positive note, we had record-breaking ridership on our Polar Express Special Event trains,” she said, noting that 132,008 passengers took a trip to see Santa Claus at the North Pole.
The bill, upon which Rep. Mike Clampitt (R-Swain) is listed as a co-sponsor, seeks $14 million for Blue Ridge Southern and about $2.4 million for GSMR.
“It’s important to the economy and the continuation of the excursion service,” Clampitt said. “Visitation brings a large amount of revenue not only to the railroad but also to the restaurants, Airbnbs and motels.”
