Tropical storm Helene caused 'catastrophic' damage to Asheville’s water treatment and distribution system, cutting off at least 70% of the city’s drinking water supply.
Tropical storm Helene caused 'catastrophic' damage to Asheville’s water treatment and distribution system, cutting off at least 70% of the city’s drinking water supply.A person carries bags of fresh water after filling up from a tanker at a distribution site in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene on Wednesday in Asheville, N.C.The faucets ran dry in Alana Ramo’s home last Friday after the storm swept through. She resorted to creek water and rainwater.
“The system was catastrophically damaged, and we do have a long road ahead,” said Ben Woody, assistant city manager in Asheville, at a press conference Wednesday.Asheville has three water treatment plants: one down by the airport, and two up in the mountains. “Highways that go to those water treatment facilities are flooded out, washed away,” he says. “So you can't get heavy equipment in until the roads are reconstructed.”
“Is it worth it to go home if the power comes back, or should I just stay gone and figure something else out?” asks Page Marshall, an Asheville resident who’s currently staying with a friend in Charlotte, North Carolina. Marshall plans to head back soon to check on her cats, and figure out whether it’s feasible to return home more permanently.This isn’t the first time Asheville has dealt with water outages from extreme weather.In 2022, the water went out for nearly two weeks, after a cold snap caused pipes to freeze.
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