‘Hopeless and helpless’: River Arts District in Asheville was another casualty of Helene

Asheville’s River Arts District, where painters, sculptors, potters and others found outlets for their creative wares, took a direct hit as the French Broad River raged through the west side of the city during flooding from Hurricane Helene.

When barricades blocking access to Riverside Drive were removed on Tuesday, local residents ventured into the area where Interstate 240 and a railroad trestle cross the river. Last week, an array of businesses lined the river on the south side of the trestle: White Duck Taco Shop; a music venue called The Salvage Station; an auto parts dealer, a crematorium and a river outfitter.

Upstream, on the other side of the bridge, were galleries and shops.

But when the river came out of its banks, water at least 10 feet deep swept through the buildings, pushing their contents so hard in the current that exterior walls were broken or bulged outward.

It was an eerie scene near sunset. Parking lots were mud plateaus, and power poles, street signs and the remains of small trees were snagged with bits of plastic and ragged fabric that fluttered in the breeze, making the place look like it was occupied by ghosts and bones.

It was nearly incomprehensible to Sonia Pitts of Weaverville, who works for the nonprofit Open Heart Arts Center in Asheville.

Looking at the devastation along Riverside Drive, Pitts was near tears.

“I don’t even know how to describe how I feel,” she said. “I feel hopeless and helpless, like I need to be doing more to help other people.”

Pitts said her family came through the storm safely, though there were tense hours when she couldn’t reach her grown children or get word on more distant relatives.

When she was able to travel down Riverside Drive, Pitts got out of her car and pulled on her mud boots to walk around, using her phone to photograph the graffiti on the concrete railroad trestle supports. The bright colors of the art stood out against the tall piles of tangled debris that had jammed against the bridge during the flood.

“These are some of my artists,” she said.

During the flood, Pitts had stood on the highway bridge above the water watching the deluge, which looked like it was boiling with huge metal containers and big propane tanks that rolled over and over against the supports before finally passing under the railroad trestle.

From Riverside Drive, Pitts walked up a bank to stand on the rail line, closed by fallen trees and other debris, and gasped at the sight of a black bear lumbering away down the tracks.

Pitts took the bear sighting as a sign of nature’s resilience.

Wildlife will bounce back, Pitts said. “And humans will too.”

Asheville watercolor artist Erica Schaffel has launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for more than 50 local artists affected by the flood. Here’s a link.

This story was originally published October 2, 2024 at 1:48 PM with the headline "‘Hopeless and helpless’: River Arts District in Asheville was another casualty of Helene."

Martha Quillin

The News & Observer

919-829-8989

Martha Quillin writes about climate change and the environment. She has covered North Carolina news, culture, religion and the military since joining The News & Observer in 1987.