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    • Evacuees from Tropical Storm Helene move into emergency shelter in downtown Asheville
    Idaho

    Evacuees from Tropical Storm Helene move into emergency shelter in downtown Asheville

    Madoc Meredith Posted on

    ASHEVILLE – Rebecca Casey, 80, of Swannanoa, made it to the emergency shelter at Harrah’s Cherokee Center just after 8:30 a.m. on Sept. 27 with the help of a kind stranger.

    Casey, who lives on the Warren Wilson College campus, was evacuated to the Quality Inn on Tunnel Road on Sept. 26.

    She told Citizen Times that she was living in the same house on the Warren Wilson campus where her husband worked as a professor when Tropical Depression Frances passed through the area in 2004. Casey said a tree fell on her neighbor’s house during the storm and she didn’t want to take any chances since Hurricane Helene has now been downgraded to a tropical storm as its gusty winds and heavy rains have begun to wreak havoc on the area. She estimated her house is surrounded by 40 to 50 trees.

    In the early morning hours of September 27, Buncombe County issued a mandatory evacuation order from the North Fork Reservoir, where water was leaking through the spillway, to Biltmore Village on the Swannanoa River.

    In response, Casey left the Quality Inn and drove downtown, following a line of cars with out-of-state license plates, she said. She was delayed by an accident but eventually made it to Harrah’s, where the city of Asheville has set up an emergency shelter.

    When she stopped in front of Harrah’s, she told Citizen Times she didn’t know what to do. She began to shake when a man wearing a hat and a long neon yellow rain jacket jumped into the back of her car and helped her navigate to Harrah’s parking garage.

    From there, the man, who identified himself to Citizen Times only as Paul, held Casey’s hand and led her up Vanderbilt Place to Haywood Street and into the lobby of Harrah’s.

    “He got me this far,” Casey said through tears. “I don’t think I could have done it on my own.”

    Do you need protection?

    Emergency shelter is available at Harrah’s Cherokee Center Asheville, 87 Haywood St., in downtown Asheville.

    Explore Asheville has listed local shelters welcoming Helene displaced residents below. Call directly and ask the manager on duty for bookings and prices on site. You may be asked for proof of residency upon check-in.

    AC Hotel (Downtown) – (828) 258-2522

    Aloft Asheville (Downtown) – (828) 232-2838

    Baymont Inn and Suites – (828) 274-2022

    Best Western Asheville – (828) 298-5562

    Biltmore Farms Hotels – (828) 274-8707

    Brookstone Lodge – (828) 398-5888

    Cambria Hotel (Downtown) – (828) 348-4850

    Candlewood Suites Downtown – (828) 220-0300

    Clarion Inn Biltmore Village – (828) 274-0101

    Country Inn and Suites Asheville Downtown Tunnel Road – (828) 254-4311

    Country Inn and Suites, Asheville River Arts District – (828) 772-3188

    Courtyard by Marriott Asheville Airport – (828) 684-5000

    Courtyard by Marriott Biltmore Village – (828) 782-5000

    Crowne Plaza Asheville – (828) 254-3211

    DoubleTree by Hilton Asheville – Biltmore – (828) 274-1800

    DoubleTree by Hilton Downtown – (828) 274-1800

    Element Downtown – (828) 575-5881

    Embassy Suites Downtown – (828) 407-0422

    Fairfield Inn and Suites Tunnel Road – (828) 274-2001

    The Flat Iron Hotel – (828) 579-2106

    Four Points by Sheraton – (828) 253-1851

    GLo Hotel Asheville – (828) 417-9300

    Hampton Inn and Suites (Biltmore Area) – (828) 575-9593

    Hampton Inn and Suites (Biltmore Village) – (828) 277-1800

    Hampton Inn Asheville – Tunnel Road – (828) 255-9220

    Haywood Park Hotel – (828) 232-8217

    Hilton Asheville (Biltmore Park) – (828) 209-2700

    Hilton Garden Inn Asheville South – (828) 633-6024

    Holiday Inn Asheville (Biltmore West) – (828) 665-2161

    Holiday Inn Express and Suites (Downtown) – (828) 225-5550

    Holiday Inn Express Asheville (Woodfin) – (828) 367-9650

    Home2Suites by Hilton – (828) 676-1776

    Homewood Suites by Hilton – (828) 252-5400

    Hotel Indigo (Downtown) – (828) 239-0239

    Kimpton Hotel Arras – (828) 255-0303

    Laurel Mountain Retreat – (828) 417-4835

    Moxy Park Hotel – (828) 949-0179

    Renaissance Asheville Downtown – (828) 252-8211

    Residence Inn Biltmore – (828) 281-3361

    River Row Flats – (828) 734-3375

    Quaint Hotel in Biltmore Village – (828) 277-0036

    SpringHill Suites and Courtyard – (828) 253-4666

    TownePlace Suites Downtown – (828) 407-4200

    Tru by Hilton – (828) 417-9700

    More: Tropical Storm Helene: Thousands of power outages across western North Carolina as the storm approaches

    More: Tropical Storm Helene: Thousands of power outages across western North Carolina as the storm approaches

    More: Hurricane Helene: Flooding and winds cause event cancellations and closures in Western North Carolina and Asheville

    Jacob Biba is the county watchdog reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times. Reach him at [email protected].

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    Madoc Meredith
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