Asheville Photographer Describes Isolation: 'It Was Like Western North Carolina Didn't Exist'

Photographer Matt Henson describes experiencing the deadly flooding in Asheville, North Carolina and documenting the aftermath. After Helene rolled through cellphone service was gone and for about 24 hours Henson said they had no way to communicate with the outside world.

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[jiggidyjam]

It’s Wednesday at 8p. I live in Black Mountain and I still don’t have any cell, WiFi, power or water. I had to drive to town and find a hotspot to send this. It’s hell on earth here. Pray for us

[jcp]

My heart is broken. Lord, keep the people safe. Let the supplies reach them. Let their minds rest and give them peace and hope that surpasses all understanding. Amen

[AlienTakeover]

Just overwhelming heartbreaking lost of words breathtaking UNBELIEVABLE

[astrahcat]

Up there EVERYONE would believe in those mountains you were safe from just about anything, never in a million years would anyone have thought this was possible.

[jelenedressler]

Hi Matt, checking in from Murphy, NC, all is good here my friend. So sorry you and your neighbors in Fairview didn't fair so well. Our entire county, (Cherokee) has been doing countless food, water and pet food drives all over town to bring to you guys who were hit so badly. Please know that everyone is working very hard to bring you all relief. God bless you and everyone over there that has lost so much. Stay strong.

[wallacerodriguez]

We lived the same situation when cat 5 Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico. The landscape was totally transformed

[acrxlic-]

as someone in the nc foothills, no one expected anything this catastrophic to happen in NC. this is truly devastating.

[MicheleMichele-pd]

Praying for everyone 🙏 that is in Ashville this is heartbreaking you are so strong God is there with you all ❤️❤️❤️

[WorshipSeasons]

The real horror begins. Clean up, rebuilding, no power and dealing with the insurance companies. I am sorry you are going through this. The damage is unbelievable.

[LuciaChaurand]

This is really heartbreaking after deadly flooding hits in Asheville, North Carolina USA of the Hurricane Helene. 💔 🙏

[Nicky-bo]

FOX--Great Interview from a person with boots on the ground. Keep sharing the info. I will pass it on to people in NC!

[brianking]

We're in West Asheville and still no power or water. Power MAY be restored by Saturday but water service will be at least 6 weeks! We have our home and our health but so many of our neighbors were totally devastated by this storm! We are so thankful for any help we have( and will) receive!! Be safe out there!

[cm]

People! We need an alternate form of communication for emergencies!!

[AndrewHarmless-wvor]

I live about 1.45 hour from the coast here in NC. We're pretty used to having to stay the night away from our rural area when hurricanes came through. I've experienced my house being hit with trees before, one where it hit had it been 5 minutes earlier would have killed me as I was in that room. We've experienced having no power or running water for 2-3 weeks at a time. We have had roads around us completely washed away. Asheville and the surrounding areas getting damaged this badly is something I would have never expected. Usually around us sadly but I don't think the death toll has ever exceeded 20. This has been truly unbelievable. I have a friend here that is from Asheville and his family has still had no contact from his dad. My family has been donating as much as we can we understand the devastation of hurricanes. I could never in a million years imagine our community being turned into this from 1 storm. Our hearts and prayers are going out to everyone out there!

[markcasler]

I can't imagine what these people are experiencing....I am heart broken to see these people that have lost love ones..I have family in Eastern Tennessee...not far from there...God bless them all..

[macpduff]

Fema has used over 800 body bags and ordered more. What caused the radio stations to go down? Were their broadcasting studios flooded? What a horror. With electric down, cell phones could only be charged from the car battery

[BreezybriefswithBrooke]

I’m here, it’s worse then what the news is saying..😢

[hersheyssmith]

The US houses won’t stand a chance against FLOOD! You can’t even stay on the roof for a long time if you want to save yourself because the possibility that it will collapse is high! Look at the houses in the Philippines which has a strong foundation, we’re talking about “REAL FOUNDATION” where you have to dig deeper into the soil, 10 feet or more depending on how many floors your house would have. That would be a solid foundation with REBARS that could stand floods and earthquakes(7 and below). Houses in the US are cheaply made that’s why when it floods, the whole house will be swept away.

[MNP]

We visited Asheville and Black Mountain in July. We did a River Rats whitewater rafting trip out of Hartford, TN. It’s so sad to see how these communities have been devastated. ☹️

[vonniofdoom]

Asheville is in a valley region surrounded by mountains, so it’s basically in a giant bowl, even a minor hurricane can cause flooding, sadly hurricane Helen was a cat 4 level hurricane so Asheville basically became a lake.