U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service and the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission have entered into a $290 million Good Neighbor Agreement to support Hurricane Helene recovery efforts in Western North Carolina. The agreement — the largest of its kind for the Forest Service — will speed up recovery efforts, create new jobs, reduce overall costs and strengthen communities impacted by the hurricane. 

More than 17 months after Hurricane Helene carved a path of destruction through Western North Carolina, the floodwaters have long since receded — but Waynesville officials say the federal reimbursement process remains mired in uncertainty, denials, reversals and what several described as mounting roadblocks. 

Crumbling promises and frozen FEMA reimbursements cast a long shadow over Waynesville’s budget retreat, where town officials confronted a stark reality — a $5.4 million deficit for the coming fiscal year, nearly $4 million of it tied up in lagging FEMA reimbursements from Hurricane Helene. 

With insurance costs climbing, mandated retirement contributions rising and capital requests topping $20 million, Waynesville Town Council will now face what one member called “the worst ever” budget picture in recent memory. 

Over the past decade or more, Western North Carolina Republicans have proven that the only candidates that can beat incumbent Republican congressmen are other Republicans. Adam Smith talks like someone who has already settled on that outcome and is now working backward to make it inevitable. 

“What conservative voters in the United States want to see is Republicans have the intestinal fortitude to do what they said they were going to do,” Smith said. 

Under a mountainside that had slipped again and again, residents of Thistle Ridge faced a grim reality — unstable ground, blocked roads and no clear path forward. 

For more than four years, bureaucratic delays and shifting priorities left a vital infrastructure fix stalled while families worried their homes could be lost and emergency access cut off. Then, Rep. Mark Pless took up their cause. 

Gov. Josh Stein announced nearly $50 million in grants to support local governments in western North Carolina in their Hurricane Helene recovery efforts. The grants, which are administered by the Office of State Budget and Management, provide critical funding to repair, renovate, or replace storm-damaged infrastructure. 

In 2025, the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality supported communities recovering from Hurricane Helene, took actions to address PFAS contamination and continued to protect the state’s natural resources for the health and prosperity of all North Carolinians, according to a lengthy DEQ press release. 

The monumental task of helping communities recover from Helene, while rebuilding in a way that makes them more resilient to future storms, played a central role in the department’s actions last year.  

If there were an award for being hardest to find while holding an important job, Michael Whatley would have no competition, because he’s the only entry.

President Donald Trump named Whatley Western North Carolina’s hurricane recovery czar at a Jan. 24 briefing, saying he wanted Whatley in charge of making sure “everything goes well.” Trump praised Whatley’s work and assured folks Whatley would be the one to fix it. 

Western North Carolina’s recovery from Hurricane Helene showed clearly that resilience is built not just by government plans on paper but by people and organizations rooted in community and commitment.

Three regional philanthropy leaders — Dogwood Health Trust, Mountain Projects and The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina — stood at the center of that response, stepping beyond missions and acting as frontline partners in relief, recovery and stability when formal systems lagged or gaps emerged. 

“The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten.”

— Benjamin Franklin (probably)

When Hurricane Helene devastated Western North Carolina, an oft repeated theme among elected and civic leaders was that the area would be built back better.