County says there’s hope for Mountain Island Lake-area homes left off Helene disaster list

There may be hope for owners of dozens of homes along the Catawba River near Mountain Island Lake as Mecklenburg County officials work toward a federal disaster declaration.

County staff estimate more than $26 million in Helene-cased damage, a preliminary figure likely to increase, said Commissioner Elaine Powell. People from around 100 residents near Mountain Island Lake were displaced as a result of the storm, The Charlotte Observer previously reported. But Mecklenburg wasn’t among 25 counties in the federal disaster declaration from President Joe Biden. The omission means the federal government won’t help with home repairs, temporary housing or property damage or other expenses in the same way as communities to the west.

Gaston, Lincoln and Catawba counties, which also border the Catawba River, were included in the federal disaster declaration. Iredell, Rowan, Stanly and Union were among other Charlotte-area counties left out.

“I met with a lot of folks who lost everything, all their personal possessions. And they’re in shock,” Powell said of residents near Mountain Island Lake. “I felt the pain of what these people were going through, the pain, the fear, the shock … And they wanted help, wanted a magic fairy to appear and make everything better.”

Parts of the area were under a mandatory evacuation order last week as Duke Energy pushed Helene’s floodwater from Lake Norman through the Catawba River and into Lake Wylie in South Carolina. The rush of water as floodgates opened led to four houses being completely swept away, Powell said. One home was found on Tuesday in Lake Wylie, she said.

“All the water from the mountains makes its way here, or a significant amount,” Powell said. “I feel like a lot of people forgot, and it makes sense, there’s so much trauma in Western North Carolina ... but this neighborhood was underwater, and four houses went down the Catawba River.”

But there’s hope.

Powell said the county is working to be added to the declaration, which requires 25 impacted residences and over $5 million worth of damages, and the request is currently under review. The county staff estimate of 89 impacted structures and and $26 million in damage tops the requirements. In the meantime, FEMA recommends residents contact local services for aid.

“Residents and businesses should continue to clean up, contact their insurance company and document damage,” Brian Haines, a spokesperson for the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, said in an email to The Charlotte Observer. “They should also please report any damage from the storm to their local emergency management agency.”

Paige Grande, a spokesperson for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Emergency Management, said residents should take advantage of city and county resources and support from nonprofits while the county works to get a FEMA declaration.

Resources include a donation drive at Calvary Baptist Church, a monetary donation fund set up by group FORCLT, and the Mecklenburg Department of Community Resources. A complete list of resources can be found on the CharMeck Responds Coaltion’s website.

Despite the lack of FEMA aid, Powell said it’s been beautiful watching North Carolinians work together in the wake of Helene.

“I just love the beauty of that,” she said. “It’s just like, ‘how can we help each other?’ And I wish there was way more of that in the world than the opposite… Mr. Rogers would be proud.”

This story was originally published October 4, 2024 at 6:00 AM.

Nora O’Neill

The Charlotte Observer

Nora O’Neill is the regional accountability reporter for The Charlotte Observer. She previously covered local government and politics in Florida.