ASHEVILLE — The North Carolina Arboretum had just more than six weeks after Tropical Storm Helene wreaked havoc and downed thousands of trees on its 434-acre campus to try and pull off its biggest annual fundraiser, Winter Lights, but the team pulled it off.

Though there was some uncertainty whether the event would take place this year after Helene, Winter Lights opened Nov. 15, one of Western North Carolina’s first signal of a return to the traditions and routines families took part in prior to Helene’s floods Sept. 27.

According to Drake Fowler, the North Carolina Arboretum’s executive director, when the Arboretum team made it back to the site to assess the damage, there were roughly 600 downed trees near the entrance alone.

“Two days after the storm, horticulture showed up and basically with chainsaws, they cut into our property,” Fowler said. “The first thing they did was clear Wesley Branch Road, which was pretty much blocked. The community was out cheering them on, and that allowed supplies to get in to us.”

In all, Fowler and the Arboretum team estimate there are roughly 10,000 downed trees throughout the property.

Return of Winter Lights ‘a huge milestone’ for Arboretum

Due to the extensive damage, Fowler said staff wondered whether Winter Lights would be able to go on.

“There was definitely some doubt whether we were going to even have a chance at a show,” Fowler said. “But with the Army Corps’ help, and with just our staff, we repurposed staff and people that normally do not hang Christmas lights were hanging Christmas lights to make it happen. So, it’s a huge milestone for our organization.”

Fowler said the Arboretum staff typically begins preparing for Winter Lights the first week of September, but Helene forced the team to start over again, having only six weeks of prep time, compared to the usual 10 to 12 weeks.

Winter Lights accounts for 25% of the nonprofit organization’s operating income, Fowler said.

“So, in a way, we had to have the show move forward.”

Winter Lights is in its 11th season and will run through Dec. 31.

Winter Lights is a walk-through experience in and around the gardens and admission is per vehicle. Tickets are $40 per vehicle. According to the Arboretum, 428 tickets were sold Saturday night, with about three to four people per vehicle.

Fowler said Winter Lights is an important tradition for a lot of families during the holidays, and affords people an opportunity to participate in customs that feel familiar, even if this year may feel different than years past.

“I think just not having one other thing cancelled was a great relief to a lot of people in the community,” he said. “There’s certain things that just aren’t open. It’s an outdoor walking show, it feels good to be outside and be with other people in an area that just kind of feels normal.

“A big part of our emphasis is, ‘Let’s make this a joyful event.’ For the most part, we just want it to be an escape, a place to feel normal and celebrate the holidays.”

That’s exactly what Saturday night’s show was for hundreds of visitors. Under a full moon, kids squealed at thousand-light displays and ran through sparkling tunnels.

Below a shining Christmas tree, Jessica Shelton sat with her daughter Reese, who sipped hot chocolate. Shelton and her husband brought their three kids to the Arboretum to celebrate their six-year-old son’s birthday.

“It’s just nice to have a little joy after all the area has experienced,” said Shelton, who said their home did not sustain damage from Helene.

Nearby, visitors wrote down their wishes for the holiday on paper and hung them like ornaments on small fir trees.

Be kind. Play soccer. Have Fun. one read. Another wish: PRAYERS FOR THE PEOPLE OF WNC.

The Arboretum staff has been intentional about incorporating the experience of Helene into this year’s Winter Lights event.

“We had these beautiful Lacebark Elms that came down in the hurricane, and we’ve left them as basically like a tribute, and we’ve lit them with white light for hope,” Fowler said. “Our staff took some of the debris, and there’s a great photo opportunity that says, ‘Our roots run deep,’ and there’s a big heart made out of the wood rounds that we’ve collected.”

Beginning Oct. 28, the Arboretum welcomed guests back to the main gardens, its Education Center and Baker Exhibit Center. 

Winter Lights allows guests to walk through gardens once again

While trails remain closed, Winter Lights offers attendees the opportunity to take part in a walking tour of the gardens, though.

This year’s Winter Lights theme is the four seasons.

“The sub-theme is that this area is strong and resilient, and we’re moving forward,” the executive director said.

According to Fowler, part of the show is typically focused on nature and seeing the gardens in a new light.

“We try to make the show really artful,” Fowler said. “There are some traditional elements, but a lot of times we’re trying to do new things and just bring different kinds of colors that you wouldn’t typically see in a holiday show.”

Families impacted, displaced by Helene are honored

Additionally, Winter Lights has rolled out a program to honor local families impacted or displaced by Helene, Share the Wonder.

“For folks who are out of town, or for people who are here and maybe want to pay it forward, you can buy tickets and we’re working with local nonprofits to get those to families that were impacted by Helene,” Fowler said.

“So, you can buy a ticket for some family that wouldn’t normally be able to come, or who has been displaced. For staff to figure out all the logistics out and the IT behind it, and come up with a great name, it’s just really fantastic.”

As Saturday night went on, volunteer and “fire rover” Jim Sparks sat by one fire pit watching the crowd.

“I’m amazed that this looks as good as it does, given how bad things are and have been,” said Sparks, who has volunteered at the event with his wife the last three years.

Their reason for coming back and volunteering?

“Because we’re grandparents, and our grandkids are in Boston,” he said. Winter Lights at the Arboretum — and church — he said, are the places filled with families that remind them of their own.

Bridget Fogarty is a journalist with the USA TODAY Network reporting for the Asheville Citizen Times in the wake of Tropical Storm Helene.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — – Omarion Hampton posted career highs of 35 carries for 244 yards with a key late touchdown that helped North Carolina beat Wake Forest 31-24 on Saturday night, pushing the Tar Heels to bowl eligibility.

It was the latest huge performance for the Tar Heels’ workhorse back, who cracked the 100-yard rushing mark for the eighth straight game. He found the end zone when he hurdled defenders near the goal line and powering through contact with 2:26 left for a 31-17 lead.

Hampton’s scoring run set his career highs for both carries and rushing yards, along with ultimately sending the Tar Heels (6-4, 3-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) to a third consecutive win. He also moved into fifth on UNC’s all-time rushing list with 3,327 yards, passing both Don McCauley and Kelvin Bryant.

“He’s tough, he takes care of the ball, he protects in the passing game,” UNC coach Mack Brown said. “He’s very humble. He never asks for the ball. I guess you don’t have to when you get it 35 times. But he usually makes the plays when he has to to help us win the game.”

Jacolby Criswell ran and threw for touchdowns for UNC, while linebacker Power Echols had a leaping snag for an interception and returned it 42 yards for third-quarter touchdown.

Demond Claiborne ran for 95 yards and two touchdowns for the Demon Deacons (4-6, 2-4), who arrived for the latest meeting in this long-running instate matchup with a 3-0 road record. But Wake Forest lost three turnovers, the last being a fumble by Michael Kern on a strip-sack by Joshua Harris deep in its own end with 5:08 left to set up Hampton’s score.

“At times I don’t think we’ve grasped the details of what it takes to win a game like that,” Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson said. “It’s all said and done, and the yardage is equal, the third downs are equal and the red-zone deals are equal. And it all comes down to those three turnovers we had that were absolute killers.”

Kern threw for 172 yards with one TD and two interceptions after taking over for starter Hank Bachmeier, who was knocked from the game with an apparent upper-body injury early in the third.

Kern hit Taylor Morin for a 40-yard shot down the seam late then found him again from 16 yards in the back of the end zone with 75 seconds left to keep hope alive, but the Tar Heels recovered the ensuing kick to kill the remaining time.

The takeaway

Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons arrived needing two wins to reach bowl eligibility and aiming to stay perfect on the road after wins at N.C. State, Connecticut and Stanford. They were within reach on this one, twice closing 14-point deficits to one-possession games, only to come up short.

UNC: The Tar Heels have turned things around from a four-game skid that included giving up 70 points in a loss to James Madison on Sept. 21, as well as the emotional blow from the death of teammate Tylee Craft due to cancer. It’s why Brown said his team had been in “such a hole” before emerging from an open week with lopsided road wins against Virginia and Florida State while racking up 17 sacks, and now pushing through this one.

Bachmeier’s injury

Clawson said that Bachmeier injured his left shoulder after being taken down on a running play, but he was well enough to return to the game. But the team had put in numerous QB running plays and decided to stick with Kern.

Up next

Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons hit the road one last time when they visit No. 12 Miami next Saturday before returning home to close the regular season against instate foe Duke.

UNC: The Tar Heels play their final road game when they visit Boston College next Saturday, then return home to close against rival N.C. State.

——

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CNN
 — 

Asheville, North Carolina, residents could have a boil water notice lifted as soon as Tuesday, more than seven weeks after Tropical Storm Helene struck on September 27.

Helene hit western North Carolina as a tropical storm, causing devastating flood damage and harm to its water system. The storm dumped so much water over the southern Appalachians in three days that it became a catastrophic, once-in-1,000-year rainfall event for the region, the National Weather Service said.

Asheville Water Resources spokesperson Clay Chandler said Friday there’s a sampling process that must take place before the notice can be lifted.

“Due to reduced turbidity levels in the North Fork Reservoir and our capacity to push treated water into the system, we’ve been able to feed a sufficient amount of filtered water into the distribution system without blending it with raw water,” Chandler said.

Turbidity is a measure of the level of particles in a body of water, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The turbidity level must be around 1.5-2 units to be safe for a standard treatment process at North Carolina’s North Fork Reservoir, the city previously said.

The North Fork Reservoir provides water to most people in Asheville, according to the Asheville Citizen-Times. Its turbidity levels dropped below 15 units on Wednesday, according to recent information released by the city. Turbidity levels had been as high as 90 units in the immediate aftermath of Helene, CNN affiliate WLOS reported.

“The use of treated water combined with customer usage has given us data that we feel is sufficient to reach the conclusion that the system has, for the most part, turned over. And the vast majority of raw water has been replaced with treated water,” Chandler said.

The sampling process, which was developed in conjunction with guidance from the Environmental Protection Agency and The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality will begin Saturday, Chandler said Friday.

“By Tuesday afternoon, evening, next week, we should have a pretty good idea of the health of our distribution system and whether or not we will be able to lift the boil water notice,” Chandler said. “Lifting the boil water notice will allow residents to resume normal domestic water use and for business to operate, unrestricted.”

Turbidity could still increase due to unforeseen events like line breaks, or “heaven forbid,” another natural disaster, Chandler said.

One Asheville couple who has lived in the area for 15 years told CNN affiliate WLOS they are excited about the possible lifting of the boil water notice.

“It’s very exciting,” Corrie Enright told WLOS. “We had heard mid-December. We had been planning for another month at least.”

In Buncombe County, where Asheville is located, at least 42 people died due to Helene. The Asheville City Schools district reopened last month, CNN previously reported.