Hurricane Helene Recovery Goes Solar
Hurricane Helene ripped into Western North Carolina in late September of 2024. The devastation was incredible, shattering records for flooding, producing tornadoes and leaving a massive swath of destruction throughout the region. Sundance Power Systems was contacted immediately by the Footprint Project, a non-profit based in New Orleans that brings solar microgrids and other related resources to disaster zones. Footprint states their mission simply:
“We help build back greener after disasters by deploying cleaner energy to communities in crisis.”
Sundance and many others assisted Footprint in bringing critically needed power to areas that had no power, communications and, in many cases, water. One such area was Garren Creek Fire Department in Fairview, NC, east of Asheville. This area was particularly hard hit with the single biggest loss of life occurring in the Craigtown community, where 13 people died in a series of mudslides.
Western NC Rallies After Helene
It has been truly remarkable to see countless organizations, state and federal agencies, military resources and ordinary citizens leap into action to help our region recover. Linemen from thousands of miles away showed up quickly to assist in getting the power back. Non-profits from near and far organized to meet critical needs. Restaurants cooked up what they had and fed thousands at no charge. Donated goods poured in from every state and beyond. Asheville’s main water source, the North Fork Reservoir in Black Mountain, was out of commission for days. The main transmission lines were 25′ deep yet were torn apart. Crews worked around the clock and restored non-potable water within a couple of weeks. (Asheville is still facing weeks without clean running water and everyone is closely watching the incredible efforts happening out there at North Fork.)
Sundance has been trying our best to serve our customers, especially anyone in need of immediate service, whether we installed their system or not. There has been increased interest in battery backup for solar systems and we are scrambling to help people learn about the options for adding batteries to their existing systems. (For new solar customers who are also Duke Energy customers, there is an excellent incentive program. It is for new solar systems with battery backup and is called PowerPair. Contact us for more information.)
It will take years for this region to recover. The scale of destruction is hard to fathom and some communities will never be the same. Helene is the worst natural disaster to hit the US since Katrina, a sobering fact. The role of climate change cannot be ignored here and, hopefully, this storm will further serious discussion and analysis of how to rebuild with resiliency.
Climate Resiliency
In 2025, Sundance Power Systems celebrates 30 years of building renewable energy systems in the Southeast. We are proud to be trailblazers for clean energy in our region and events such as Helene show us all that an urgent crisis is no longer theoretical nor in the future. It is happening now, to all of us, and we need to address it through individual action, public policy and overall awareness. As the slogan goes, ‘There is No Planet B.’
