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As the smell of death permeates through the mountains of western North Carolina, volunteers remain steadfast in delivering supplies to hundreds upon thousands of survivors displaced by one of the deadliest hurricanes in American history.
After drowning out parts of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, Hurricane Helene deluged Appalacha on September 27, 2024. Torrential rainfall was accompanied by six tornadoes, flash floods, sinkholes, mudslides, power outages and a near-total communications blackout.
The ensuing sunrise revealed a wasteland of splintered homes, pummeled cars and innumerable fatalities throughout the Tar Heel State. Military veterans have since compared the aftermath to that of a war zone, noting post-traumatic similarities to Iraq and Afghanistan.
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RELATED | AT LEAST 500 DEAD IN ‘APPALACHIAN APOCALYPSE’
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“This is something that soldiers deal with when they come back from the battlefield,” said Michael Keister, a U.S. Army (USA) veteran turned emergency supply manager for Pleasant Grove Baptist Church. “That destruction, that chaos, that death, that carnage. It’s difficult.”
Notwithstanding minuscule death tolls reported by mainstream media, Helene caused at least 500 fatalities in western North Carolina alone — an abhorrently conservative estimate censored by Facebook and circumlocutorily criticized by onlookers.
While the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) maintains that Helene killed 95 mountaineers, members of the Western Carolina Emergency Network (WCEN) purport that “at least” 143 bodies were recovered in Buncombe County, N.C., alone.
Sources furthermore provided FITSNews with photographs of human remains, buddied with the names of over 100 victims purportedly recovered from an interminable debris field spanning to Erwin, Tennessee. As of this publishing, search, rescue and community recovery efforts continue.
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“Anyone who’s been in this area knows how inaccurately Helene is being reported,” concurred Marry Beth Poole while cataloging pallets of donations in Swannanoa, N.C., earlier this month. “And because of that, people don’t know how much help we desperately need.”
After joining an ensemble of alternative media outlets publicizing the unfortunate reality unfolding in Appalachia, the author asked any and all viewers of our weekly podcast to email him with tips or testimonies from the High Country. He was subsequently inundated within hours.
In addition to an outpouring of support for our raw media coverage, viewers from as far as Alaska have offered a wide range of support — including skilled labor and affordable housing for displaced mountaineers. We have since received written permission to publish some of these proposals online.
FITSNews intends to update this live-feed article as more viewers are reached, as more services are offered and as more permissions are granted.
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HOT MEALS ON-SITE…
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According to Oliver Segars, the South Carolinian can serve anywhere from 500 to 3,000 hot meals “per trip” to western North Carolina. Just this month, he and his team served over 5,700 people across two separate trips to Buncombe and Yancey Counties.
“I’d love to find other locations in need,” Segars wrote in an email to the author. “This is a zero-cost service that does not require running water or power. All we need is good information on where to go, and permission to come… All we need are hungry people (sic).”
Segars can be reached at 843-858-3481 or via email at osegars@gmail.com.
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WARM CLOTHES, BEDDING …
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In response to rolling cold fronts and plummeting nighttime temperatures, Anita Darin remains steadfast in finding an address to send “a collection” of winter coats and blankets. After contacting many people to no avail, she emailed the author of this report.
“In May, I visited Spruce Pines for the first time, and it was an absolutely wonderful experience,” Darin wrote on Monday. “Put me on a list. Whatever you need to do to make it easier… I look forward to being able to send these things to help the people of Appalachia.”
Darin can be reached via email at anitavacation13@gmail.com.
In addition to Darin, John and Lee Ann Richards have offered to deliver warm clothes and bedding throughout Asheville, N.C. According to the couple, they hope to “do the best for people in dire need” of warmth — ahead of frigid winter temperatures.
The Richards’ can be reached via email at ordpd@mail.com.
“Appalachia has my (emotional) heart in a tight grip,” wrote a third viewer, Pilar Casero, offering additional supplies to those displaced by Helene. “I have Mylar emergency blankets… I am desperate to help. I live in Marion [N.C.], but I will take them anywhere I can drive my KIA Soul (sic).”
Casero can be reached at 828-808-3313 or via email at terramor@aol.com or pilicasero1101@gmail.com.
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SKILLED LABOR …
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In addition to East Coast volunteers, Shawn and Jodie Schmidtke are among hundreds to have seen Appalachia’s distress signals from the Pacific Northwest. As of this writing, the Oregon-based couple is in western North Carolina with supplies in hand.
“We are self-sufficient,” wrote Jodie in a recent email. “My husband brought his chainsaw and his [personal protective equipment]… We are scheduled to work with Samaritan’s Purse this Tuesday through Saturday. After that we would like to go help in other areas.”
The Schmidtke’s can be reached via email at jodieschmidtke@icloud.com.
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HOUSING…
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In response to innumerable families displaced by Helene, Miriam Carney is offering a temporary residency at her vacation cottage in Port Orange, Florida. According to the registered nurse (RN), her property is fully furnished and equipped with amenities.
“I just saw your interview on FITSNews… There are literally no words (sic),” wrote Carney in an email on Monday. “We are blessed to have no damage… Do you know of anyone I could host for about a month? I feel it is something I can offer. [The cottege] is suitable for 1-2 people.”
Carney can be reached via email at angelofmercee@hotmail.com.
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A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING …
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In addition to those offering specific goods and services, at least two viewers reached out with too many proposals for one specific section.
According to Melody Wright, the host of Forgotten American and contributor of Doomers News Network on YouTube, she has raised over $15,175 to serve as a “general fund” for purchasing generators, food and fuel for those displaced by Helene.
“I have also had two people who want to donate a camper, both of which are in decent shape,” wrote Wright in an email to the author. “One is fairly big, while the other is smaller but still has a propane stove. We would have to coordinate getting them here, but I have a line on that (sic).”
Wright can be reached via email at Melody.Wright@huringa.co, or on X at @m3_melody.
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In addition to Wright, Tom Gosselin of Virginia hopes to deliver an assortment of supplies alongside a friend from New York on the weekend of November 2, 2024. Both Tom and “Xhulio” plan to enter Black Mountain, N.C., via I-40 and make myriad deliveries as needed.
“We are coming with debris removal… and heavy equipment operations,” wrote Tom. “We will have wool blankets, additional ham radios, collapsible 5-gallon water jugs, medical gloves, cleaning supplies, propane tank adaptors, CO2 detectors, battery banks… can openers, solar lanterns, tapping rolls, food, goods, propane and diesel (sic).”
Tom can be reached via email at gooseneckapologetics@gmail.com.
If you or someone you know is interested in posting services to displaced victims of Hurricane Helene, please contact the author of this live feed via email at andy@fitsnews.com. Additional housing opportunities, as well as generators, are potentially available upon contact.
“The less manpower we have, the more death there will be,” concluded a volunteer. “We have entire communities that are relying on us to bring medication and keep their generators fueled… But as we get to working in the snow, I’m worried that our volunteers are going to dwindle out.”
This story may be updated.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Andrew Fancher is a Lone Star Emmy award-winning journalist from Dallas, Texas. Cut from a bloodline of outlaws and lawmen alike, he was the first of his family to graduate college which was accomplished with honors. Got a story idea or news tip for Andy? Email him directly and connect with him socially across Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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2 comments
“As the smell of death continues to permeate through the mountains of western North Carolina…”
This is the second time Andy has wrote something to this affects. Are you saying you literally smelled and continue to smell corpses? Because that’s what you’re suggesting.
“Helene caused at least 500 fatalities in western North Carolina alone”
Here, Andy cites only his own report with no source. How’d you get 500, Andy? If you are going to claim the true death toll is 5X what the state is reporting, you should be specific.
“…members of the Western Carolina Emergency Network (WCEN) purport that “at least” 143 bodies were recovered in Buncombe County alone.”
The “WECN” was literally created after Helene hit. If you don’t believe me, look at when their social media and website pages were established. Their website was also registered in California, suggesting they may not even be local to Western Carolina. It is apparently not a well established organization. From their posts, it looks like they probably are helping in recovery efforts. But if they support this claim, why aren’t they making it on their pages? They haven’t even posted any of Fits’ articles. Likewise, Fits and Andy never actually tagged them in their social media posts. They only used a # instead of @. It doesn’t seem like they publicly stand by the claim.
That this involves Buncombe County is also interesting. Just this week, their sheriff had to retract an originally reported death toll, as it was inflated (although it still wasn’t near 143). Andy is effectively saying they are lying. Also of note: in a previous article, Andy claimed additional deaths in Swannanoa, where this week the fire department put out a statement to combat misinformation of inflated death tolls. Again, Andy is implying they are lying.
““Anyone who’s been in this area knows how inaccurately Helene is being reported,” concurred Marry Beth Poole”
After Andy quoted this person in a previous article, I looked her up. First of all, her name is “Mary”, not “Marry”. Andy has misspelled her name in both articles. Bad job, Andy.
Anyway, you can easily find her on Facebook by searching her full name. Like the “WCEN”, Marry does not appear to be local to Western NC. She traveled there from Virginia after Helene. I don’t doubt from her posts that she’s helping, but I also don’t believe she’s a reliable source for reporting death tolls. In one post I read, she claimed that the state’s reported death toll does not include unidentified people, and that deaths are not reported until they are identified. This is simply incorrect. From the last numbers I saw, the state’s 96 reported deaths includes 13 unidentified bodies. So, Mary either doesn’t know what she’s talking about here, or is lying.
It is absolutely true that western NC needs help and I applaud those who are helping with recovery efforts, especially volunteers. But Fits, Andy, and Will are disgusting for continuing to spread these garbage lies. They only stand to detract from recovery efforts, as officials have to spend their time investigating and addressing BS claims. This may be a new low for this “news” organization.
I’m afraid that I’m going to have to agree with the above poster about needing to cite some reliable (note I did not say “official”) sources who are willing to go on the record. But I don’t think FITS is despicable; they are to be commended for sending someone up there personally. However, we are 3 weeks out from this event. That is enough time for a person or organization, who has a direct source of personal knowledge and a historical presence in the region, to say how many are dead (identified or not) and missing. Well- meaning interlopers are not good sources. I would really like to hear an official statement from Samaritan’s Purse on this. They are based in Boone, have a large presence in western NC, are well-regarded as trustworthy by the locals and pretty much all of their leadership on the ground is local.