Hurricane Helene wiped out virtually all of Western North Carolina (WNC). It caused catastrophic damage and flooding to the region’s public, civic, and emergency infrastructure and private resources. The storm, which occurred in late September 2024, caused widespread flooding that compromised nearly one-quarter of the 359,000 private wells and over a quarter of the 34,000 businesses situated within 110 yards of the flooded areas. Local restaurants were hit the hardest, with more than 1,100 establishments confined to closed or destroyed.
Hurricane Helene magnified the vulnerability of critical services. More than a quarter of the 500 fire stations within 5 miles of the flooding were inundated. Gas stations and grocery stores were heavily impacted, making recovery in the storm’s wake that much more difficult.
In response to this unprecedented crisis, Kelsey J. Pieper and her research team developed an innovative mapping system designed to estimate the impacts on environmental health services throughout North Carolina. This county-specific mapping tool zooms in on the locations of private wells in all 25 counties across WNC. It arms public health officials with critical, cutting-edge real-time surveillance data they need to make effective, informed decisions.
During a day of unprecedented rainfall caused by Hurricane Helene, decision-makers were able to use the mapping system to quickly analyze the flooding’s effect. They immediately assessed the impact on their drinking water sources. This was especially important because the storm suddenly exposed countless communities to serious health risks from drinking water contaminated with lead and other heavy metals.
The team ensured that their findings were easy to access with an online portal, which was critically important for agencies in the midst of developing a disaster response. Hundreds of users discovered the portal and the matching tool in the chaotic days and weeks following the hurricane. It supplied them with almost real-time data on where flooding would be most impactful.
“Hurricane Helene sent a wave of devastation through Western NC, unlike anything our representatives had ever seen,“ said Larry Michael, a member active in the relief efforts. He spoke to the greater role timely, authoritative data could play in moving us toward better disaster and emergency management.
Access to this real-time impact data would become indispensable. This allowed our team to identify priorities, which allowed us to make better, quicker decisions to protect people and public health and safety,” Michael said.
The mapping system played a pivotal role in helping public health officials distribute disaster relief more effectively in the storm’s aftermath. The county- and regional-level information on private well safety guided the initial investment to the areas most at-risk. This policy-based approach guaranteed that funding went where it could do the most good.