Two Locals Help Deliver Aid to North Carolina

By Lynn Bledsoe

Gimlet Reporter

Jobe Publishing, Inc.

 

Hurricane Helene is set to be one of the most deadly and destructive forces that swept a path through Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, and the Carolinas. The rain came so fast the ground became saturated in the span of about one hour. This caused trees to fall, mud to slide and boulders to roll. Sides of mountains came crashing down taking everything in its path along with it. It took cars, homes, churches, and businesses. How do you rebuild your life? When you have nothing left? There are no banks to set up GoFundMe’s with. No post offices to help send a letter to loved ones. No internet to communicate with. No roads to travel to safety and help. How do you bury your loved ones when the cemetery is also gone? There is nothing. These people needed help and lots of it.

Two young men from Edmonson County, Aaron Foulks and Clay Townsend decided pretty quickly to help North Carolina. Aaron said he grew up with his grandfather, Dennis Wright, helping others and he wanted to help. Since he is a small business owner, he had the freedom to take off and help. Not knowing what waited for them and having no plan other than to go help. They gathered supplies from family members, Asphalt Church of Christ, borrowed a side-by-side vehicle from Robert Brown, and took off.

Their first problem was where to go? Once they arrived in Ashville, they could see that there were a lot of people and supplies so the guys decided to try somewhere else. They ended up driving until they found a small fire station in Gerton. Gerton is located about 30 miles South of Ashville, in the mountains. Gerton was ground zero. They were the first volunteers to arrive in the area. It had been 4 days since the hurricane had passed through.

The Gerton Fire Department welcomed their help. Gerton has 258 residents so we are talking about a very rural and small town. They worked with the fire department to help clear roads that had yet to be touched. There was not one road in this area that was not destroyed. Aaron said without the side by side they would not have been able to reach as far as they did. They transported 4-5 firemen up the “roads”. The roads were completely washed away in some areas and they had to go off-road to cut new roads through people’s yards or just the open land. Aaron and Clay said they did not see a single FEMA person. They were able to travel 100 yards or less at a time. Then they would have to stop and cut trees, power lines, and electric poles to continue. Aaron and Clay were relieved when they were able to rescue one lady, Shelia Pagent. She was inside her house when she heard the roar of the debris coming. In a matter of minutes, half of her house was gone. If the mudslide had moved over 10 more feet she would have been gone too.

Clay said there were many helicopters and planes in the area. They assumed these were dropping supplies to residents from the air since there was nowhere to land. Clay said the first day the Army had dropped 12 pallets of food and water and locals with tractors were helping with the distribution of that. Both said by the second day lots of people were there videoing and taking pictures which is a two-edged sword. First, it is great that word of who needs help gets out and where they are located is being reported on, but they are also in the way sometimes. Aaron also said there was a lot of looting. People were just walking into the homes and businesses and taking what they wanted.

Clay and Aaron talked about one 90-year-old gentleman in particular who had stage 4 cancer and could not be moved. They left what supplies they could and continued to move forward. The community of Middle Fork had about 100 people that still had not been reached until the guys showed up in the side-by-side.

Everyone was grateful for the help provided by Aaron and Clay. The men said that where roads used to be there are now 40-foot drop-offs. The debris pile was 10 feet deep or more where they were traveling. Besides the electricity being gone so were the water lines.

They are grateful they could help those residents and I’m sure the residents will always remember the kindness of the Kentucky boys who showed up to help.