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    • Flooding in Asheville, North Carolina destroys businesses and breweries in the River Arts District
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    Flooding in Asheville, North Carolina destroys businesses and breweries in the River Arts District

    Eira Gwyneth Posted on

    ASHEVILLE — Overlooking the River Arts District, the Riverlink Bridge, a central gateway between downtown and West Asheville, has become something of a gathering place as residents suffer from historic damage to businesses during the devastating flooding caused by Tropical Storm Helene razed to the ground.

    Live updates on flooding in Asheville, North Carolina: Buncombe County discusses the latest relief efforts

    As the water flowed past in the early afternoon of Sept. 28, the river was still well above its banks and over 17 feet, according to NOAA. Spectators continued to flock to the bridge, which is named after a regional nonprofit dedicated to the health and safety of the French Broad River. The reaction of many people is one of great awe, sadness and horror as the underlying River Arts District, known as one of the premier arts centers in the Western North Carolina region, is completely inundated.

    For many business owners in the district, the destruction is total. Along Depot Street, an empty car sits in the middle of the road, window open and child seats covered in mud, seemingly dragged from its original location. Just down the street, Erin Quevedo, the owner of Balm Salon on Depot Street, was ankle-deep in mud, trying to salvage what she could from her business.

    “The salon was completely destroyed. It looks like the water was up to about 5 feet inside,” Quevedo said. Five hairdressers worked with her in the salon.

    “Right now we’re just trying to save what we can,” said Erin Quevedo, noting that few things, such as hairdressing tools, were salvageable. “A lot of it was underwater.”

    Inside the salon, flooding had caused parts of the walls to peel off as her husband, Ted, stood in a thick veil of mud as he packed hair products and supplies. The future is unclear.

    “It’s really heartbreaking. I’m not really sure what we’re going to do. I think it’s just step by step,” Quevedo said.

    “I would like to rebuild if I can, but I mean it’s really hard to say. This could be a devastating blow to my business and livelihood,” she continued.

    Other businesses appear to have been completely destroyed by the floods. The second corridor on Riverside Drive appears to have imploded under the weight of the river. The building is fine

    Just a few minutes from Depot Street, Jason Razillard hands out baked goods and coffee from the back of his van as residents pass by on the Riverlink Bridge and loiter in shock at the event. After receiving a cold brew from the man, Gabby Fricke, a Deaverview resident who was staying with friends in West Asheville, reflected on the horror of the event.

    “It’s heartbreaking. That’s it really. We’re a bit isolated because we saw fallen trees, but this? “That was shocking,” said Gabby Fricke. “I can’t imagine what people in Swannanoa Valley are going through.”

    Others began rowing canoes or kayaks down the river, while others simply stared from the bridge as barrels – likely from one of the many damaged breweries in the area – propane tanks and shipping containers slowly moved down the river. A mess of debris from the storm has accumulated on the Craven Street Bridge, seemingly clinging to the road as the river rushes past.

    Fricke’s friend Hannah Bink comes from Wilmington, the coastal city in North Carolina where hurricanes and tropical storms are common. Bink, however, believed that Asheville’s flooding looked much different because Wilmington often has the infrastructure and planning for weather events.

    “There is infrastructure in place to contain the river,” Bink said of Wilmington’s containment of the Cape Fear River.

    “This was clearly not planned. None of this was planned,” Bink said, referring to the French Broad.

    More: Asheville, North Carolina Flooding Live Updates: ‘Biblical Devastation’ Reported; Deliveries are coming by air, the governor says

    Asheville Citizen Times local news editor Aaron Nelsen contributed to this story.

    Will Hofmann is a growth and development reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Do you have a tip? Email him at [email protected]. Consider supporting this type of journalism with a subscription to Citizen Time

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    Eira Gwyneth
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