The Swannanoa River at Biltmore in Asheville, North Carolina, has reached flood levels not seen since 1791 after Hurricane Helene brought torrential rain to the area.
Helene made landfall late Thursday night about 10 miles west of Perry, Florida, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). The storm was a Category 4 hurricane at the time, with maximum sustained winds at around 140 miles per hour. The storm brought life-threatening storm surge, devastating winds and torrential rain to the area, which contributed to excessive flooding across several Florida cities. Seventeen people have died from the storm, the Associated Press reported.
The storm has quickly moved through the Sunshine State and is now a post-tropical cyclone with winds of 35 mph over Kentucky. After it made landfall and moved further inland, the massive storm brought severe flooding across North Carolina.
Rain has been so severe in Asheville that it caused the Swannanoa River to crest at 26.6 feet after rising 19 feet in roughly 20 hours. The river, which is currently 10 feet above the level needed to reach major flood stage, has not surpassed 26 feet since 1791.
“Record Flood Stage. This stage last occurred in April of 1791 according to Tennessee Valley Authority records. Catastrophic flooding of the Swannanoa River Valley is likely,” the National Water Prediction Service posted on the river gauge’s website.
Major flood stage of the river causes “extensive inundation of structures and roads,” the website said. “Significant evacuations of people and/or transfer of property to higher elevations.”
Newsweek has reached out to the National Weather Service (NWS) office in Greenville-Spartanburg by phone for comment.
Water from the Gulf of Mexico floods a road as Hurricane Helene churns offshore on September 26 in St. Pete Beach, Florida. The Swannanoa River in Asheville, North Carolina, is experiencing flooding not seen since… Water from the Gulf of Mexico floods a road as Hurricane Helene churns offshore on September 26 in St. Pete Beach, Florida. The Swannanoa River in Asheville, North Carolina, is experiencing flooding not seen since 1791.
Joe Raedle/Getty
According to the gauge, the river appears to have crested, and its levels are forecast to begin falling soon. The river should fall below moderate flood stage by Saturday morning, with levels continuing to fall until they fall below action stage by early Sunday morning.
A flash flood warning issued by the NWS said that “flooding impacts will continue, but little to no additional rainfall is expected.”
The warning added that locations expecting floods include downtown Asheville, East Asheville, Arden, West Asheville, North Asheville, Black Mountain, Mills River, Woodfin, Fletcher, Swannanoa, Weaverville, Fairview in Buncombe County, Biltmore Forest, Bent Creek, UNC-Asheville, B.R. Parkway-Nc Arboretum to East Asheville, Warren Wilson College, B.R. Parkway-East Asheville to Craggy Gardens, Skyland and Biltmore Park.
Videos and photos have been shared across social media showing roads, houses and businesses in Asheville completely inundated with floodwaters.
The extreme flooding comes as AccuWeather meteorologists warned that some North Carolina cities were forecast to receive 10 times their monthly rainfall amount. As of Friday afternoon, Asheville has received 13.15 inches of rain, according to the NWS Weather Prediction Center. Its monthly average is 3.81 inches.
Meanwhile, rain has been so catastrophic that it prompted immediate evacuations in Rutherford County for fear that the Lake Lure Dam faced imminent failure.
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