Latest news with #MountainofTrouble
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Yahoo
Guests return to western North Carolina inn after Hurricane Helene
MCDOWELL COUNTY, N.C. (WGHP) — There's an old joke about how you eat an elephant where the punchline is, 'One bite at a time.' The point is that even monumental tasks can be accomplished if you just start and keep plugging away. That's the way Carter Francois has been dealing with his livelihood washing down the side of a mountain in McDowell County during Hurricane Helene. After seven months of constant work, Carter and his business partner, Steve Carlsen, have half of their dozen rooms ready for guests once again. 'Originally, I didn't think we'd make it at all because I wasn't in tune with how bad the damage actually was,' Francois said. 'But once we decided … we could make a go of it … just kept on working until we made it happen.' Among the first guests were Corey Sinclair and his wife, Joanne Ponvanit, who came from Los Angeles. They experienced their own natural disaster with the wildfires that damaged much of that area. Ponvanit's place of work was closed at least for a while. Being across the country, they weren't as familiar with the damage Helene did as many in North Carolina are. 'Being here and seeing it and driving through, it just puts things in perspective of how much damage was done,' Ponvanit said. 'We had read about the damage, and we love to support any way we can, and what's left is amazing, and it's beautiful, and I encourage people to come up and really enjoy the view, and the food is good, and it's great,' Sinclair said. They wanted to come see where Sinclair's relatives lived in the Great Smoky Mountains and travel the Blue Ridge Parkway while they were on this side of the country and decided to book a night at the Alpine Inn. 'We had no idea that we would end up with a view like this … The story behind it … adds to the excitement … We were just going to stay last night, and we enjoyed it so much … It's just so beautiful that we decided to stay again tonight,' Sinclair said. So the Alpine Inn isn't fully booked these days, but the fact that he has some money coming in rather than money simply going out to pay for reconstruction is a great change for Francois. 'We're kind of behind the 8-ball a little bit in terms of when we normally start, but we're open,' Francois said. See more about the reopening of the Alpine Inn in this Mountain of Trouble edition of the Buckley Report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Western North Carolinians work to get lives back on track after Hurricane Helene
MCDOWELL COUNTY, N.C. (WGHP) — Carter Francois looks across a half-rebuilt Alpine Inn and says without bravado: 'I'm kind of proud of myself.' He should be. His entire livelihood washed down a mountain in McDowell County as Hurricane Helene dropped nearly two feet of water on western North Carolina overnight. He had to rebuild it all without any income. 'The numbers for a rebuild, compared to what I paid for this place, are astronomical,' Francois said. 'So I never thought I'd be saying $1,600,000 to put it back … kind of the way it was.' Every day for the last seven months, Francois and his business partner, Steve Carlsen, have done the tedious work of digging out and rebuilding. 'I've been here every day … It seems like a lifetime,' Francois said. 'You wake up and go, 'How the heck am I going to get out of this?'' One way is with the help of caring people. One of them is Chastity Murphy, who is part of a 501c3, which is a registered charitable organization called Carolina Relief Fund. 'Carter's story just really hit me hard, and I wanted to do whatever we could to try to help,' Murphy said. She brought it to the others in the organization, including Joe Russell. Russell points out that doing work as they're doing with Francois is nothing new. 'We've been helping people for about 12 years when houses burn down and with needs at Christmas,' Russell said. Russell, Murphy and their team have met with Francois on multiple occasions to see exactly what he needs. See more on how Carolian Relief Fund is helping Francois recover in this Mountain of Trouble edition of The Buckley Report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Western North Carolina man struggles to rebuild inn
MARION, N.C. (WGHP) — Most people will never have to deal with what Carter Francois is dealing with. Overnight, he lost his livelihood. His business, The Alpine Inn, washed down the side of a mountain during Hurricane Helene. Since then, he's been dealing with bureaucracy and trying to rebuild. His insurance company says they won't pay out on his $2.5 million policy because it was flooding that did it and not wind, which he had coverage for. Months after Helene, western North Carolina still rebuilding So Carter is trying to find ways to pay for rebuilding the inn. If there is any bright spot in all of this, it's that what washed down the mountain was the lobby and common spaces of the inn. Most of the rooms are still standing. But they need to be completely overhauled, which is Carter's daily project. 'The six rooms that if we can stay almost 100% booked. I know it's only six rooms, but I think it'll keep me afloat,' Carter said. He has 12 rooms in total and plans to get to them all over time. The problem is that he has no income, so it's hard to pay for everything even if he does it by himself. The Small Business Administration is there doing what they do, but what the SBA does isn't providing the cash Carter and so many other businesses need. As of February, the SBA reported these numbers: Official loan application count: 3,954 Offers made to the public: 589 Loans dispersed: 431 Offers made in dollars: $29,203,100 Loans dispersed in dollars: $12,208,613 Insurance companies struggle amid western North Carolina cleanup Carter feels as if he can't take on more debt right now even at the excellent, by comparison to the private sector, rate that the SBA offers. He's heard about all the money raised in private-sector fundraisers and wonders where it's all gone. 'You do turn the news on, and you hear millions upon millions of dollars from the federal government being sent here and there,' Carter said. 'And all these fundraisers, too … My question is, 'Where is it going?' Because it's not here … Up here in this mountain, it's people helping people.' See more in the series Mountain of Trouble in this edition of The Buckley Report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
