SWANNANOA, N.C. (AP) — When 12-year-old Natalie Briggs visited the ruins of her home after Hurricane Helene, she had to tightrope across a wooden beam to reach what was once her bedroom.
Knots of electrical wires were draped inside the skeleton of the house. Months after the storm, light filtered through breaks in the tarps over the windows. “All I could think of was, ‘This isn’t my house,’” said Natalie, who had been staying in her grandparents’ basement.
At school, Natalie sometimes had panic attacks when she thought of her ruined home in Swannanoa.
“There were some points where I just didn’t want people to talk to me about the house — or just, like, talk to me at all,” Natalie said.
Thousands of students across western North Carolina lost their homes a year ago when Helene hit with some of the most vicious floods, landslides, and wind ever seen in the state’s Appalachian region, once considered a 'climate haven.' More than 2,500 students were identified as homeless as a direct result of Helene, according to state data obtained by The Associated Press.
While storm debris has been mostly cleared away, the impact of the displacement lingers for the region’s children. Schools reopened long before many students returned to their homes, and their learning and well-being have yet to recover.
The phenomenon is increasingly common as natural disasters disrupt U.S. communities more frequently and with more ferocity. In the North Carolina mountains, the challenge of recovery is especially acute.
Finding stable housing became all-consuming
After Helene flooded her rental home in Black Mountain, Bonnie Christine Goggins-Jones and her two teenage grandchildren had to leave behind nearly all their belongings.
“They lost their bed, clothes, shoes, their book bag,” she said. The family lived in a motel, a leaky donated camper, and another camper before moving into a new apartment in June.
The area around Asheville, western North Carolina’s largest city, still has a significant housing shortage a year after the storm.
America Sanchez Chavez, 11, had to split up to find housing after Helene left their trailer home uninhabitable. Money from FEMA wasn’t enough for renovations, causing her to stay in a hotel room while she worked with her mother.
Displaced students spread across North Carolina
After natural disasters, it’s common to see a surge in students living in unstable, temporary arrangements. Following Helene, student homelessness spiked in several hard-hit counties, with reports showing significant increases in Yancey County.
Some students never returned to classes while others enrolled in different school systems after being displaced. Families have expressed the need for support and resources to help recover from the ongoing challenges created by the hurricane's impact.
Housing instability has a lasting impact
Gwendolyn Bode, a pre-law student at Appalachian State University, struggled to keep up with her classes after losing her apartment to flood damage. She described feeling overwhelmed and disconnected from her education. For Natalie Briggs, emotional struggles brought on by housing instability impacted her daily life as well.
As recovery continues, the community looks toward long-term solutions to address the challenges that families face in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
