BAKERSVILLE, N.C. — North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein was in Bakersville, North Carolina, on Thursday to talk about more funding for Helene recovery.
It’s been 18 months since the storm caused billions of dollars of damage across western North Carolina.
The governor suggested several ideas to help people still struggling with housing along with assisting local governments and small businesses overwhelmed by the scope of the disaster.
Channel 9’s Dave Faherty was in Mitchell County, where projects are underway to rebuild homes near Spruce Pine.
Some families in the area are still living in campers after their homes were destroyed by flooding and fallen trees.
TW and Angela Randall showed their Bakersville home to Faherty. The house filled with water during Helene, which caused mold and forced the Randalls to move into a camper in their backyard.
“The mold got up in me and my wife,” TW Randall said. “(It) got us real sick. We moved out for a while and then started living in a camper.”
The Appalachia Service Project, which is funded by the state, is assisting the Randalls.
“It’s a blessing,” said Angela Randall. “Don’t know what we’d do without them because we’re stuck.”
“It’s a blessing,” said Angela Randall. “Don’t know what we’d do without them because we’re stuck.”
Stein visited the Randalls. The governor believes more needs to be done to help families and businesses in western North Carolina.
“We are not finished,” Stein said. “We have more work to do.”
Stein is proposing close to $800 million in additional funding to strengthen the regional economy, keep more people in safe places to live, restore infrastructure, and improve disaster response.
The governor hopes lawmakers will agree to more forgivable loans to small businesses and a revolving loan program for cash-strapped local governments.
“For folks who need affordable quality housing, it invests in rental and housing assistance, including those whose homes we are actively repairing today,” Stein said.
Faherty spoke with resident Judy Burleson, who said she had water rushing under her home during the storm. Burleson lost her well, her roof, and her yard.
She is glad the governor is back in western North Carolina and knows what she’d say to him.
“I would say to help people out that are struggling just to get things fixed, to where we can get back to normal,” Burleson said.
The governor also spoke about proposed funding to get the Blue Ridge Parkway reopened more quickly and money to protect people from wildfires
The state has already provided $1.9 billion in funding for the Helene recovery.
VIDEO: Helene: 1 Year Later
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