Asheville’s River Arts District Confronts Aftermath of Hurricane Helene

Hurricane Helene dealt Asheville’s historic River Arts District a heavy blow, with an estimated 80 percent of its buildings damaged by a record wall of water from the French Broad River.

When the river rose to 24.67 feet, it instantly took works of art, studios, and the incomes of hundreds of artists involved in painting, photography, pottery, glassblowing, glass and metal work, sculpture, and printmaking.

The once-lively North Carolina neighborhood is still busy, but not with customers or tourists. Rather, it is volunteers, artists and business owners cleaning up the toxic, muddy mess left behind.

One businesswoman handed out a protective mask warning that the area was unsafe as the mud was a mixture of chemicals, excrement, and other unpleasant substances.

Asked if she would reopen her business, her answer was a decisive “no.”

People posting to Facebook have labeled the catastrophic event as “painful,” “depressing,” and “sad” and have said they are “heartbroken.”