Homeowners and renters in North Carolina may be eligible for FEMA Rental Assistance if they cannot live in their homes because of damage due to Tropical Storm Helene. 

The Town of Canton’s temporary operations hub on Summer Street, home to town hall and the police department since shortly after deadly flooding in 2021, is about to get a little bigger. 

The deadline for North Carolinians in 39 counties to apply for FEMA Individual Assistance after Hurricane Helene has been extended to Jan. 7, 2025. 

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To the Editor:

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North Carolinians who lost access to water through a private well or damaged septic system as a result of Hurricane Helene may be eligible for FEMA assistance. 

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack visited Asheville to hear firsthand from local, state and Tribal officials, emergency managers, food bank staff and volunteers, and impacted producers on the region’s relief and recovery efforts and highlighted resources from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to help producers, families and communities in the Tarheel State recover from the devastating impact of Hurricane Helene. 

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality is offering initial emergency loans to 20 local governments for emergency projects to rehabilitate drinking water and/or wastewater systems in response to damages caused by Hurricane Helene. 

As the rain from Hurricane Helene mercifully subsided around noon on Sept. 27, smaller creeks in Haywood County receded fairly quickly, the extra water from each flowing into larger tributaries before combining into the Pigeon River as it heads through a narrow gorge into Tennessee. 

With the North Carolina General Assembly’s preliminary $273 million relief bill in the rearview mirror, Western North Carolina Sen. Kevin Corbin (R-Macon) is looking down the road at the General Assembly’s next move — a billion-dollar relief bill coming Oct. 24. During a recent meeting with Haywood County officials, Corbin spent about an hour trying to learn what, exactly, the needs are.  

“I can promise you what you won't get,” Corbin said. “You won't get things you don't ask for.”