Wilson teams help western NC storm victims

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Armed with a small backhoe, chain saws and grit, teams of area men cut trees and limbs and removed debris from homes in western North Carolina last weekend.

William Figueroa, a co-owner of Wilson’s Providence Funeral & Cremation Service, was one of a dozen men on two teams to deploy in the Spruce Pine area of Mitchell County to help with cleanup following damage from Hurricane Helene.

“The hugs that were given by some of the family members were the biggest payment one could receive,” Figueroa said.

On the way, Figueroa encountered two large trucks that were stuck on a steep mountain road, a stretch of N.C. 80 in Yancey County.

“We actually took a route that was a disaster route, but it was still somewhat in operation, so we were able to climb the mountain and get up through that closed route,” Figueroa said. “During that route, we actually helped two oversized trucks get unstuck and helped them be on their way about 2 in the morning. These trucks were jackknifed and they were on a narrow path that led to a collapsed road. They couldn’t exactly just turn around. It was a pretty big mess.”

The team used three vehicles to carry about 1,200 pounds of relief supplies to Lily Branch Baptist Church in rural Mitchell County, which was the rendezvous point. The items had been donated to Providence and to the Cavvietta Quarter Horse and Cattle Co. in Wilson County.

“It was everything from sleeping bags to canned goods to blankets,” Figueroa said.

“We were welcomed and set up camp at the church,” Figueroa said. “It was full of other workers and there wasn’t much space, so we pitched a few tents and we were outside the church.”

Residents directed the teams to the hardest-hit areas from the storm.

“We got there, started working and didn’t stop,” Figueroa said. “Seeing what this town has gone through makes you appreciate what you have.”

The group cleared fallen trees from roads and paths and unclogged small creeks blocked by debris and trees.

“We cleared a 250-yard path just to get back to a family’s home,” Figueroa said. “We were running chain saws nonstop.”

The group stayed and worked together until Sunday.

Team members included Figueroa, Gino Viamari, Tate Hull, Nate Hudson, Andrew Guess, Elijah Champion, Chris Sanders, Vinnie Soten, state Sen. Buck Newton, Mike Lester, Bowen Lester and Pedro Torres.

“Plenty of work was done, but there is still plenty of work that still needs to be done,” Figueroa said. “I think the most important thing to provide to these people was just a helping hand.”

Newton said the level of devastation in remote areas is difficult to comprehend.

“There is just so much devastation there,” Newton said. “Many people are out of work. I am just glad we were able to lend some help with some skills. There is a lot of work that needs to be done up there for many years to come.”

Bowen Lester of Elm City has worked in the Swannanoa area of Buncombe County for the last two weeks.

On Thursday, Lester was running a forklift unloading an 18-wheeler filled with T-shirts, underwear and general clothing items.

“Mostly I have been escorting medical teams out to do wellness checks in hard-to-reach places,” Lester said. “I have been cutting limbs up. I have been doing supply drops to remote areas, going door-to-door asking elderly people if they have any needs that need to be taken care of.”

Lester said many residents still don’t have water or electricity.

“It is getting better,” Lester said. “Every day they turn on a couple more houses, but there are some people that Duke Energy has told them they are not going to have power for four months or more.”

Lester said he has been translating for Spanish-speaking residents.

“Probably the most important thing that everybody has been doing up here is just talking to these people,” Lester said. “They are terrified. They are alone, especially these old people who are way up in the hills that are hard to get to. Their phones are out. They haven’t been able to talk to anybody in weeks. They are overjoyed to be able to have us go and fill their prescriptions and get a checkup at their houses from our medical teams and everything. But I think that a lot of what is saving them the most is us being able to sit down with them and give them 15 or 20 minutes just talking to them. Being human with them is probably the biggest part of their effort here.”

Lester, who’s in the application process to become a rotary aircraft pilot in the U.S. Army, said each area has its own unique set of challenges.

“I watched a 70-year-old man break down and cry with me,” Lester said. “He was overjoyed that his community was getting water, food and generators and everything, but he was begging me for building supplies because they have nothing now and nothing to rebuild with and nobody to come and help them. His wife told me they were digging through the mud from where the river overflowed looking for screws and nails to use.”

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