Coffee house that rallied town after flood is intentionally burned, NC police say

A beloved coffee house that helped rally a flooded mountain town after Hurricane Helene has been destroyed and investigators suspect arson.

High Five Coffee in Woodfin, North Carolina, was found engulfed in flames at 1 a.m. on Thursday, the Woodfin Police Department reported in a Facebook post.

“Fire officials responded quickly and worked to suppress the blaze, but the building is a total loss,” police wrote, noting the business became symbolic after Hurricane Helene in 2024.

“Since reopening, High Five resumed serving residents, commuters, and visitors while helping to restore a sense of normalcy to the area’s small business community, on the heels of Helene. The Town of Woodfin is saddened by the loss of this Woodfin treasure.”

Surveillance video helped identify a suspect, and he was found and arrested not far from the scene, police said.

The suspect, Nicholas Hunter Grigsby, had been ordered to avoid the coffee house as part of domestic violence protective order, court documents report.

Grigsby, 36, has been charged with: felony burning a commercial building; violating a domestic violence protective order; resisting arrest; felony possession of methamphetamine, and possession of drug paraphernalia, officials said. He is being held in the Buncombe County jail under a $100,000 bond, police said.

News of the fire prompted an outcry on social media, with some calling it “a major loss” for the town of around 8,000 people.

“I went to see for myself. Three people (were) there with tears in their eyes. This was a community strong hold,” Rosiland Whiteley wrote on Facebook.

“I’m heartbroken. ... I was so happy to see them come back after Helene,” Alissa Sherman Isenhath posted.

“The town is standing behind the business to help it rebuild,” Lila Lakshmi said.

Hurricane Helene crossed North Carolina in September 2024, dumping as much as 30 inches of rain in some areas, the state reports. The resulting floods contributed to nearly $60 billion in damage across the state, according to the N.C. Office of State Budget and Management.

“In Woodfin, Hurricane Helene’s rains flooded homes, bridges, the recycling plant, and its largest employer Silver-Line. When the flooding finally receded, the river was left polluted,” Gov. Josh Stein said in a Facebook post.

High Five Coffee is on the banks of the French Broad River and was among the sites that were inundated, but it was also among the first sites in town to reopen.

Woodfin is about a 135-mile drive northwest from uptown Charlotte.