North Carolina

A local reporter’s experience covering Western North Carolina in the wake of Helene

Published

1 year ago

November 8, 2024

A local reporter’s experience covering Western North Carolina in the wake of Helene

It’s hard to put into words what it’s like to pull up to where a family’s home once stood and see mounds and mounds of cracked, beige dirt.

To notice that a wooden, split-rail fence managed to withstand more than 20 feet of swift-moving floodwaters, yet not realize until later that the fence bordered the home’s driveway. To walk next door to a tiling warehouse, where men in white coveralls and muddy black boots are removing storm debris, and ask if there was a house next to their place of business.

And, when one answers in the affirmative, to have him walk you and your photographer to the spot where a family once laughed and cried and prayed together – all while knowing the tragic outcome of their story.

My job is to put these kinds of experiences into words. More than a week later, I’m still struggling to.

I tried to begin this piece – a brief description of my reporting in Asheville, North Carolina, as part of the USA TODAY Network’s Hurricane Helene coverage – in a light-hearted way.

I thought about starting with how we in the Asheville Citizen-Times newsroom had to use gallon buckets to force-flush the toilets because there was no running water. About how bags of cat litter sat in the halls in case reporters needed to take them home to create a makeshift bathroom.

I thought about describing the lovely man I encountered as I traipsed around a homeless encampment, who was all too willing to show me where a tree fell on his tent and legs when Helene swept through Western North Carolina. His rebuilt camp is the tidiest I’ve ever seen – and my beat has taken me through quite a few.

But today, on an unseasonably warm Tuesday in late October, I wrote and rewrote the beginning of this piece. Because this afternoon – and the afternoon before it – my heart is heavy.

It’s heavy for the Dryes and Wiselys, two families who lost almost everyone to the floods, and the other Asheville survivors I spoke to. For the families who are still waiting to hear about loved ones.

For the homeless residents who told me they fear some of their acquaintances who perished in the storm will never be claimed by family because of their transient status. And for the Western North Carolina community as a whole, which is mourning the loss of homes and pets and landmarks and an art colony that disappeared entirely in mere hours.

As students, journalism hopefuls are taught to keep an arm’s length from stories and sources. Reporters must remain objective, professors stress, which means maintaining a certain level of detachment. If you care too much, your feelings might find their way into a piece and influence your ability to tell the story fairly.

But what this (well-intentioned) lesson leaves out is humanity.

How can one travel to natural disaster-ravaged areas, interview families who lost parents and siblings and children and grandparents, and not be impacted?

How can a reporter spend hours at a barricade situation involving an 11-month-old girl and not feel emotional when they’re told a chaplain has been called to the hospital where the baby was rushed following a gunshot wound to her head?

And how can journalists be expected to cover school shootings – as the Texas-based photographer I worked alongside in Asheville did in Uvalde in 2022 – and remain emotionless?

I don’t believe reporters can. And I also believe this is something those in the field have long known.

At the first newspaper I worked at, I had an editor who was decades into his career. He knew I was fresh out of college and hadn’t chosen the breaking news/public safety beat (which I’m so thankful I was assigned to because it’s now my specialty.) He knew that I’d write a lot of hard stories in my career.

So, one day, he offered me a piece of advice: The moment this stuff – the really tragic, heavy stories, he meant – stops getting to you, get out of the profession. Or, at the very least, take a long enough break to where you can feel the humanity of this again.

Eight or so years later, I remember those words like he spoke them yesterday. So, on days when my heart is heavy, I think it’s OK to feel this way.

Because what’s happening in Western North Carolina is heavy – and it will be for that community and those journalists for a while.

Isabel is an investigative reporter covering breaking news and public safety, with an eye toward some of Delaware’s most vulnerable: children, those struggling with addiction, and those with mental illness. She can be reached at ihughes@delawareonline.com or via X at @izzihughes_

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North Carolina

Duarte girl kidnapped in 2020 at 5 years old found safe in North Carolina

Published

7 hours ago

March 11, 2026

Press Room

Duarte girl kidnapped in 2020 at 5 years old found safe in North Carolina

A girl who was kidnapped from Duarte in 2020 when she was just 5 years old has been found safe in North Carolina.

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office said it found Karen Rojas, who is now 11, on Tuesday. She was enrolled in school under an alias, according to investigators.

Authorities said she was kidnapped on June 2, 2020.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services notified Washington County law enforcement that she may be in the state.

They coordinated with several agencies, located the girl and took her into protective custody.

“These are very rare occurrences to have such a positive outcome on such an old case as this, but it reminds us that through hard work, and dedication, and cooperation, stories with positive outcomes like these can happen,” the Washington County Sheriff’s Office said in a social media post.

Due to the age of the child, further information was not immediately available.

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North Carolina

These 4 Western NC towns are among WorldAtlas favorites for 2026

Published

19 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

These 4 Western NC towns are among WorldAtlas favorites for 2026

A new list from WorldAtlas named the publication’s top 10 favorite North Carolina towns of 2026, including several locations located in Western North Carolina.

Founded in 1994 by cartographer John Moen and his wife, Chris Woolwine-Moen, WorldAtlas publishes educational materials and articles on geography, sociology, demography, environment, economics, politics, and travel.

Previous Citizen Times articles have covered numerous mentions of Western North Carolina from WorldAtlas, including “idyllic” and “unpretentious” towns, scenic drives, a favorite downtown area, and more. In the new list, published March 9, WorldAtlas writers chose their all-time favorite North Carolina towns ― almost half of which were located in the western region of the state.

Here’s what WorldAtlas had to say about mountain North Carolina towns, plus the full list and more.

What to do in Banner Elk, N.C.

WorldAtlas noted the range of activities offered in Banner Elk throughout the year. The town sits in the Blue Ridge Mountains between the Sugar Mountain and Beech Mountain ski resorts. Writers highlighted the following locations and activities in Banner Elk:

Wildcat Lake, which has a lifeguarded white-sand beach and is used for swimming, non-motorized boating and fishing for largemouth bass, trout, and bluegill
Grandfather Mountain Nature Museum, a museum located at Grandfather Mountain
The Mile High Swinging Bridge, the highest suspension footbridge in the United States, which visitors can cross on foot

What to do in Blowing Rock, N.C.

Also included on the WorldAtlas list, Blowing Rock takes its name from a rock formation where the wind appears to blow upward. The list highlighted the following locations and activities in Blowing Rock:

The town’s namesake, “Blowing Rock,” is a rock formation known for views of Johns River Gorge and the surrounding forest
Fishing, spelunking and rock climbing opportunities in the area
Moses H. Cone Memorial Park, also known locally as “Cone Park,” which has hiking trails and is located on the Blue Ridge Parkway
Memorial Park on Main Street, where town events and concerts often take place

What to do in Brevard, N.C.

Brevard, also known as the “Land of Waterfalls,” is home to more than 200 waterfalls located across Transylvania County. WorldAtlas highlighted the following locations and activities in Brevard:

Museums, trails, rock climbing and the surrounding area’s many waterfalls
Guided Jeep and hiking tours to view waterfalls throughout Transylvania County
Veterans History Museum of the Carolinas, a museum displaying artifacts from U.S. military conflicts
Transylvania Heritage Museum, a museum focused on local history and genealogy

What to do in Hot Springs, N.C.

Hot Springs’ name comes from the natural springs that attract visitors from across the state and region. The springs are commonly visited by hikers seeking relief after traveling along the Appalachian Trail, which runs through the town. WorldAtlas highlighted the following activities and events:

Kayaking on the French Broad River
Trailfest, a celebration of hiking typically held in April
French Broad River Festival, a celebration of the French Broad River held each year on the first weekend of May
White-water rafting and ziplining opportunities in the area
Fishing, skiing, sport shooting, golf, disc golf, biking and horseback riding opportunities throughout the area
A range of accommodations including campgrounds, privately owned cabins, apartments, suites and cottages, with options from basic to luxury experiences

WorldAtlas’s best towns in North Carolina

The full list of WorldAtlas’s favorite North Carolina towns of 2026 included:

Banner Elk
Beaufort
Blowing Rock
Brevard
Davidson
Edenton
Hot Springs
Seagrove
Manteo
Wrightsville Beach

Iris Seaton is the trending news reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at iseaton@citizentimes.com.

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North Carolina

‘It was dire’: NC State professor returns from Qatar after being trapped during Iran war

Published

1 day ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

‘It was dire’: NC State professor returns from Qatar after being trapped during Iran war

An North Carolina State University professor is back home Monday night after he was trapped in the Middle East as war with Iran broke out.

Rich Spontak was stuck in Qatar while traveling from Bangkok to Spain and was forced to stay in the country for about a week. Several travelers were trapped for days in the Middle East after Iran’s
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several defense leaders were
killed in joint strikes by the United States and Israel.

Spontak, like many travelers, found himself stranded in the Middle East after the initial attacks, which quickly entangled more surrounding countries, including Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, where seven U.S. service members were killed in retaliatory attacks from Iran.

Spontak said there were times he thought he wouldn’t make it out.

“I would just keep looking out and looking for the missiles,” Spontak said. “Some people that I met along the way were hit by shrapnel from the missles. It was dire.”

Airspace over Iran, Iraq, Bahrain, Kuwait and Syria remained closed, according to flight-tracking service Flightradar24. Azerbaijan also shut the southern sector of its airspace on Thursday after accusing Iran of a drone attack that injured four civilians and damaged an airport building.

Lilia Austin, a Chapel Hill woman who was part of a group of 100 women who went to Israel for a trip the day before Khamenei was killed, also returned home on Sunday after she left Israel through Egypt.

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