A trio of high-ranking state and federal agriculture officials is warning that if farmers affected by Hurricane Helene don’t get help soon, next year could be a bleak one for both producers and consumers. 

The USDA Forest Service released its preliminary data on the ecological impacts and infrastructure damage caused by Tropical Storm Helene on the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests in North Carolina. 

The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission’s (NCWRC) Armstrong State Fish Hatchery in McDowell County north of Marion sustained significant damage as a result of flooding and landslides during Hurricane Helene.

The Water Quality Advisory Committee has released its latest report detailing potential impacts of revising the Macon County Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance — the last of three such floodplain ordinances the county has considered revising this year.

A coalition of Haywood County community organizations, quasi-governmental institutions, local businesses and private individuals have stepped in where the North Carolina General Assembly wouldn’t — by creating a fund that will make grants to small businesses impacted by Hurricane Helene. 

The Republican-led North Carolina General Assembly took its second step in flood recovery on Oct. 24, designating from the state’s $4.4 billion Rainy Day Fund an additional $604 million in funding and resources for disaster recovery in response to Hurricane Helene — far less than the $3.9 billion the state’s Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper wanted, and with little real help to businesses that can’t afford to take out more loans. 

(Editor’s Note: Amid the chaos of the recent floods from Hurricane Helene, this column wasn’t able to run in the Oct. 2 issue of The Smoky Mountain News due to space issues in the midst of crisis.)

Hello from Room 13 at the Seabirds Motel in Kure Beach, North Carolina. Saturday morning.

As Hurricane Helene fomented in the Caribbean, it seemed likely that Great Smoky Mountains National Park would take a direct hit. The storm reached Category 4 before slamming Florida’s Gulf Coast, then headed north toward the Smokies. 

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. 

On Friday evening, downtown Waynesville was in kind of a festive spirit — a far cry from what all of us here in Western North Carolina have felt for over a week now.